NIKA SPIRIT

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Seized Russian tanker to be auctioned by Ukraine

The National Agency of Ukraine for Finding, Tracing and Management of Assets Derived from Corruption and Other Crimes (ARMA) has put up for sale the 'Nika Spirit', which has been seized in Izmail, Odesa region. The auction is scheduled for April 21, 2025, with a starting price of UAH 2.438.5000. The vessel is actually a tanker for the transportation of oil products. It was built in 1989. The functional wear and tear is 80%. On Nov 4, 2024, the Dniprovsky District Court of Kyiv allowed the Asset Recovery and Management Agency (ARMA) to seize the Russian tanker, formerly known as 'Neyma', which was detained on July 24, 2019, in the port of Izmail. The vessel was identified as the one used to block the Kerch Strait on Nov 25, 2018., when it allegedly ran aground under the arch of the Kerch Bridge, while the Ukrainian ships 'Berdiansk' and 'Nikopol' and the tug 'Yany Kapu' were making a planned passage from the port of Odesa to the port of Mariupol in the Sea of Azov and were attacked by Russian warships, resulting in the capture of Ukrainian sailors.

Seized Russian tanker to be auctioned by Ukraine

Ukraine’s Asset Recovery and Management Agency (ARMA) responsible for seized assets during the Russian war has received the court authority to proceed with the sale of the ÄNika Spirit', the Ukraine has detained since 2019. The product tanker, which was involved in an incident pre-dating the February 2022 invasion, will be sold to provide funds for the Ukrainian defense efforts. It can be more effective in selling seized Russian assets instead of the prior plan to manage the assets for income. THe ARMA started preparations for an online auction to sell the tanker after receiving authorization from the Dnipro District Court of Kyiv. The agency had appealed to the court for authority and is in the process of seeking an independent appraiser to set the value of the tanker. The vessel, then sailing as 'Neyma' was involved in an incident in Nov 2018 where it claimed to have grounded near the Kerch Strait Bridge's main channel. The channel was blocked to coincide with the passage of three Ukrainian naval vessels from Odesa to the port of Mariupol. The vessels were attacked by Russian forces which boarded the ships and seized 24 Ukrainian crew members. The Russian authorities charged them as civilians for violating the Russian border. The tanker berthed in July 2019 in Izmir where the Ukrainian authorities moved to detain the ship for its involvement in the incident. The vessel was displaying the name 'Nika Spirit', but was still using the same IMO identification number as Neyma. Ukraine released the crew but continued to hold the vessel. The ARMA took custody of the tanker after the invasion and in 2023 reported it had selected a manager to operate the 'Nika Spirit' until 2026. The agency has instead decided to sell the ship to quickly raise badly needed funds for Ukraine. The agency also has control of the bulk carrier 'Emmakris III', which was in the port of Chornomorsk at the time of the invasion. ARMA presented documentation in court showing the vessel’s beneficial owners were a Russian company, Linter, registered in the city of Rostov-on-Don, although the ship is registered in Panama and listed as being managed by a company in the UAE.

Tanker was used to supply fuel to the occupied Crimea

The "Nika Spirit" was used to supply fuel to the occupied Crimea, an investigation established. The municipal court of Kherson on Aug 13 handed down a ruling upon considering a motion filed by prosecutors and the SBU security service on seizing the vessel which was believed to have supplied fuel to certain units of Russia's Black Sea fleet. The court has dismissed the motion. The Prosecutor's Office for the Autonomous Republic of Crimea is preparing an appeal. Searches were conducted on the vessel in Kherson. The investigation claimed the vessel was used in "smuggling petroleum products" into the temporarily occupied territory Earlier, the SBU along with the Military Prosecutor's Office detained the Russian tanker "Neyma", which in Nov 2018 blocked Ukrainian naval vessels from passing the Kerch Strait before the Ukrainian boats were attacked and eventually seized by Russian forces. The investigation found the tanker which had sailed as "Mariya" and "Vilga" had been renamed into "Nika Spirit" to conceal the involvement of the vessel in said illegal actions, which led to the arrest by Russia of 24 Ukrainian sailors, who Ukraine stresses were being held as prisoners of war.