Nicaragua-flagged tanker suspected in shadow fleet runs aground off India

Ortega government selling Nicaraguan flag to shadow fleet, opposition says

A Nicaragua-flagged oil tanker under investigation for allegedly transporting fuel subject to U.S. sanctions ran aground off India’s western coast on July 8 after breaking free from its anchor during severe weather, Indian officials said.

The 597-foot MT Al Jafzia grounded near Manori Beach, north of Mumbai, according to India’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence. The vessel was unmanned at the time of the incident, the agency said.

Indian authorities identified the tanker as part of a suspected “shadow fleet” used for clandestine maritime operations, the directorate said. Investigators said the vessel had allegedly switched off its tracking system to conduct ship-to-ship fuel transfers at sea, a practice commonly used to conceal the origin of oil cargoes and evade sanctions.

The MT Al Jafzia was one of three vessels detained by Indian authorities after investigators detected suspected fuel smuggling, fuel theft and illegal ship-to-ship transfers, according to press reports.

Nicaraguan opposition leader Juan Sebastián Chamorro wrote on X that the vessel’s use of the Nicaraguan flag demonstrated Ortega’s government had joined the shadow fleet. “Ortega is now selling the Nicaraguan flag and joining the shadow oil fleet,” Chamorro wrote. He said the case “demonstrates Ortega’s ties with Putin to evade sanctions.”

Political scientist José Antonio Peraza told the Nicaraguan news outlet 100% Noticias that the operation appeared to be an illegal transaction intended to evade sanctions or obtain favorable transport terms for the fuel. “Nicaragua does not have a long tradition of merchant ships sailing under its flag around the world,” Peraza said. “Therefore, it is very difficult to believe this could happen without the involvement of the Nicaraguan authorities or the Ortega dictatorship.”

Economic analysts warned that the incident could increase the risk of additional international financial and commercial sanctions against Nicaragua if foreign governments conclude the country’s flag is being used to facilitate shipments of sanctioned Iranian oil.

Ortega’s government had not commented publicly on the incident as of July 8, the Nicaraguan newspaper La Prensa reported.

Nicaragua maintains close ties with both Russia and Iran. Nicaraguan Vice Foreign Minister Valdrack Jaentschke was in Iran this week to attend the funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Ortega has previously described Nicaragua’s revolution as the “twin” of Iran’s revolution, according to the UPI report.