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On Sep 10, 2024, the USA announced that it was blocking nine vessels for transporting munitions from Iran to Russia. The US has officially accused Iran of transporting munitions to Russia, which were to be deployed in the coming weeks against Ukraine. The US has claimed that many vessels owned by the Russian ship operator MG-FLOT have been transporting munitions, particularly Close Range Ballistic Missiles (CRBMs), from Iran to Russia for use in the war against Ukraine. This concerned the 'Boris Kustodiev', the 'Port Olya 3', 'Port Olya 4' and the 'Kopozitor Rakhmaninov', which have been claimed to regularly transit the Caspian Sea transporting cargo between Russia and Iran. Two Russian shipping companies were also being sanctioned for owning vessels that have been involved in the transport of munitions. The Vafa Wholesale Ltd., along with its vessels 'VCafa' and 'Vafa 1' have been added to the sanctions list. The Vafa Wholesale Ltd. is the owner of a vessel that was used to transport UAV-related equipment from Iran to Russia via the Caspian Sea. Similarly, the shipping company Sea Service Limited Liability Company and its vessels have been blocked for owning a vessel, namely the 'Omskiy 103', which was used for the transport of munitions from Iran to Russia via the Caspian Sea. Other vessels owned by the Sea Service LTd. Liability company that have been blocked were the 'Omskiy 119' and the 'Zakams'.

The 'Everest Energy', operated by a recently establish India-registered enterprise, sails across Arctic waters as part of a shady Russian scheme established to bypass sanctions in Russia’s covert efforts to ship liquified natural gas from the sanctions-ridden Arctic LNG 2 project. Along with a fleet of at least seven vessels, the 'Everest Energy' is involved in the shipments from the port of Utrenny in the Gulf of Ob. This week, the ship made port call in Utrenny, the terminal in the Gulf of Ob, and picked up LNG from the Arctic LNG 2 production facility frp, Sep 7-8. It subsequently set course for east Arctic waters and markets in Asia. However, although clearly located in the area, the ship is not listed in the registries of the Northern Sea Route Administration, the Russian state body that regulates shipments on the route. All ships that sail in the remote Russian Arctic waters are normally listed in registry. The 'Everest Energy' and the other notorious tankers are hired by Novatek and its partners to circumnavigate sanctions. The shady operations are supported from the highest level in Moscow. The Russians have found useful partners in India. The ship owner is the Ocean Speedstar Solutions Opc Private Ltd., a company registered in Mumbai and established in Jan 2024. The 'Everest Energy'will inevitably encounter sea-ice on its voyage along the Russian Arctic coast, as parts of the North Siberian Sea and the Chukchi Sea still have significant volumes of sea-ice. The carrier has a sea-ice classification of +1A1, which means that it is able to operate in light ice conditions and localized drift ice.

On Sep 10, 2024, the USA announced that it was blocking nine vessels for transporting munitions from Iran to Russia. The US has officially accused Iran of transporting munitions to Russia, which were to be deployed in the coming weeks against Ukraine. The US has claimed that many vessels owned by the Russian ship operator MG-FLOT have been transporting munitions, particularly Close Range Ballistic Missiles (CRBMs), from Iran to Russia for use in the war against Ukraine. This concerned the 'Boris Kustodiev', the 'Port Olya 3', 'Port Olya 4' and the 'Kopozitor Rakhmaninov', which have been claimed to regularly transit the Caspian Sea transporting cargo between Russia and Iran. Two Russian shipping companies were also being sanctioned for owning vessels that have been involved in the transport of munitions. The Vafa Wholesale Ltd., along with its vessels 'VCafa' and 'Vafa 1' have been added to the sanctions list. The Vafa Wholesale Ltd. is the owner of a vessel that was used to transport UAV-related equipment from Iran to Russia via the Caspian Sea. Similarly, the shipping company Sea Service Limited Liability Company and its vessels have been blocked for owning a vessel, namely the 'Omskiy 103', which was used for the transport of munitions from Iran to Russia via the Caspian Sea. Other vessels owned by the Sea Service LTd. Liability company that have been blocked were the 'Omskiy 119' and the 'Zakams'.

The Master of the '‘Pepe Barreiro’ pleaded guilty at Bandon District Court Sep 7, 2024, to illegal fishing activity. The vessel was detained at Castletownbere port on Sep 6 following an inspection by Sea-Fisheries Protection Officers of the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA). The court heard evidence of how Sea-Fisheries Protection Officers conducted an inspection of the vessel and detected the non-recording of Common Sole in the fishing logbook; retention of undersize Crawfish onboard the vessel; failure to separately stow Sole and Megrims and failure to have a stowage plan recording Common Sole.

On Sep 9 the 'Cable Innovator' was at work in the Salisbury Sound 25 miles north of Sitka, mending a broken fiber optic cable that took Sitka offline in late August, but it could be close to a week until repairs have been finished. The GCI, Sitka’s primary internet and cellular service provider. is part of a professional service group that allows for these repair ships to become available in the rare event of a break. The fiber repair shift was mobilized to get to Sitka and arrived on site over the weekend, of Sep 7/8. The break occurred in a stretch of fiber optic cable between Sitka and Angoon in Salisbury Sound. The cause of the problem was still unknown. The repairs should be completed by the end of the week. Meanwhile, the company has restored basic internet and cell service using a combination of satellite and microwave technology. Report with photo: https://www.kcaw.org/2024/09/09/repair-ship-working-to-mend-cable-break-that-took-sitka-offline/