Media: EU and Britain investigate Maltese Alkagesta for supplying Russian oil to Libya through “shadow fleet”

20 August 2025 , 18:27

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Media: EU and Britain investigate Maltese Alkagesta for supplying Russian oil to Libya through “shadow fleet”

EU and UK authorities are investigating Alkagesta for allegedly selling Russian oil illegally to Libya, according to media reports.

Alkagesta, which operates the largest oil bunkering network in Malta, has previously been suspected of participating in Libyan oil smuggling, including the use of falsified certificates of origin.

Libya relies on imports for roughly one-third of its refined oil products from Russia, as its domestic refining capacity is insufficient to meet local demand.

Sources cite at least two recent cases of oil tankers carrying Russian oil for Alkagesta to Malta and Libya which fraudulently claimed that the oil came from Kazakhstan.

Alkagesta uses the Austrian Raiffeisen Bank, which is one of the last remaining European banks that still operates in Russia. In Malta, Alkagesta also hired Russian-speaking employees.

Industry sources and reporters estimate that the Russian Mediterranean Dark Fleet is involved in a $10 billion industry in terms of trading volume per year with the trading routes stretching from Syria, Egypt, Cyprus, Malta and Libya. Malta is an important and strategic location for the illegal Libyan oil trade and potentially serves as a major hub for the transfer of Russian oil.

Oil sales that were transacted in Hurd’s Bank have also occasionally been registered in Malta but the actual sales and transfers taking place in Hurd’s Bank are thought to be significantly under-reported.

Alkagesta says that it has a “high level of compliance” wherever it operates. They also threatened legal action against “false accusations”.

Thomas Brown