The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) announced earlier today that it carried out a joint attack with the Ukrainian Navy on two Russian “shadow fleet” tankers in the Black Sea, the Louise 1 (IMO: 9290323) and the Banda (IMO: 9337406).The SBU said its Mamai naval drones struck the vessels, which are under Ukrainian sanctions. The Banda, however, is not listed in the Ukrainian military intelligence agency’s registry of Russia’s “shadow fleet.”The SBU said Russian aircraft tried to destroy the sea drones during the attack, firing machine guns at them and dropping aerial bombs, but failed.According to Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, HUR, the Louise 1 was used to export Russian oil in violation of the G7 and EU oil embargo and the price cap mechanism. The vessel carried oil from ports in the Baltic and Black seas while using tactics such as switching off its automatic identification system, or AIS, including in the Gulf of Finland.In February 2026, the tanker carried nearly 735,000 barrels of Urals crude from Russia’s Primorsk port to Turkey. In March, it delivered more than 1 million barrels of Urals crude from the Sheskharis terminal at Novorossiysk to India. The seller was Redwood Global Supply FZ-LLC, a company registered in the United Arab Emirates that Britain sanctioned in December 2025 for activity in Russia’s energy sector.According to Ukrainian intelligence, Redwood is part of a network of companies linked to 2Rivers Group, considered to be one of the largest operators of Russia’s “shadow fleet.” In May, the Louise 1 again carried more than 1 million barrels of Urals crude from Novorossiysk — some of it on behalf of sanctioned Russian energy giant Lukoil. Ukraine imposed sanctions on the vessel on Feb. 12, 2026.According to Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the Louise 1 sails under the Panamanian flag. The tanker last transmitted an AIS signal at about 9:30 a.m. Moscow time on July 16, then turned off its transponder. Because of large-scale AIS spoofing — the falsification of a vessel’s location data — its exact location cannot be determined. The latest available data indicated that it was near Novorossiysk. The tanker arrived in the Black Sea about a week earlier after calling at an Indian port.According to Starboard, the Banda arrived in the Black Sea on June 19 after sailing from Pakistan. However, due to AIS coordinate manipulation, its exact location also cannot be determined. At the time of the attack, the vessel was in the Black Sea, likely in its eastern part. The SBU said the Banda had carried Russian oil from the ports of Ust-Luga, Kerch, Novorossiysk, and Nakhodka.The SBU noted that a week earlier, a Ukrainian Sea Baby naval drone had attacked the sanctioned tanker Blue in Ukraine’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea.