Flora 1 was in the russian oil port during drone attacks March 15-April 1. Normal downtime is 2-4 days.
Swedish Coast Guard press release Good Friday morning, April 3, 2026: ”Early on Friday, the Coast Guard flagged down the tanker Flora 1, a ship suspected of having caused an oil spill in the Baltic Sea, east of Gotland. The Public Prosecution Service is leading a preliminary investigation into suspected environmental crimes. In connection with the discovery, it was found that the ship is on the EU sanctions list and several unclear circumstances surrounding the ship, including its flag status. In operation Klöver, the Coast Guard has brought the ship to anchorage outside Ystad. The operation was carried out in cooperation with the Police Authority.”
The Coast Guard discovered a 12-kilometer-long oil spill from the tanker Flora 1 approximately fifty kilometers east of Gotland. That is, in the Swedish economic zone but outside the territorial waters.
Operation Clover
The ship was boarded by the Swedish Coast Guard and the police task force in the strait between Skåne and Bornholm. Judging by Marine Traffic’s map of Swedish territorial waters. According to the same source, it was en route from the Russian oil port of Primorsk in the Gulf of Finland to Santos in Brazil.
The tanker Flora 1. Photo Coast Guard
Flora 1
Flora 1, which is currently anchored off Ystad on the Swedish south coast, is registered in Sierra Leone or Cameroon. The chemical/oil tanker is on the EU sanctions list and has an unclear flag status.
The tanker is considered by maritime analysts and authorities to be part of the Russian shadow fleet and is suspected of environmental crimes. The ship is often used to transport Russian oil despite international sanctions.
The boat’s journeys across the Baltic Sea are monitored by Swedish authorities, in this case east of Gotland by the Swedish Coast Guard’s Bombardier Dash 8 Q D.
The ship was built in 2005, is 21 years old and has connections to the so-called shadow fleet that transports Russian oil, which makes its routes through the Baltic Sea subject to surveillance by Swedish authorities.
These ships are often older, have unclear insurance conditions and undergo inadequate maintenance, which poses a major environmental hazard to sensitive waters such as the Baltic Sea and the Bornholm Strait.
Facts
Flora 1 arrived in Primorsk (or the anchorage outside) on 14 March 2026. She remained in the area for over two weeks, only leaving Primorsk on 1 April 2026. This is an unusually long time for a tanker and suggests that loading was delayed, likely due to the logistical problems caused by the attacks.
Since the heaviest attacks on Primorsk took place between March 23 and March 31 , Flora 1 was still in the port area when the drones struck.
- March 23: Large columns of smoke were seen from the terminal after a confirmed drone strike.
- March 29: New attacks damaged additional storage tanks. Satellite images from this date show extensive fires near the loading docks.
- April 1: Just as Flora 1 was reported to have left port, a series of attacks against the entire region’s oil infrastructure (including Ust-Luga) culminated.
Scenario
Loading crude oil or chemicals while a terminal is on fire or under attack is extremely dangerous as sparks or new impacts can cause catastrophic explosions.
- Flora 1 was at anchor outside the terminal, waiting for its turn or for fires to be extinguished.
- She was given permission to dock and load quickly between attacks, or just after Russian authorities judged that the most urgent danger was over.
- The fact that she left port on April 1st suggests that she received her cargo just as the Russian operators were trying to empty remaining stocks before the next wave of attacks.
Status April 3: Flora 1 is in the Bornholm Strait with destination Santos, Brazil. The boat is heavily loaded (draft of about 12 meters), which confirms that she managed to get her cargo on board despite the chaos in Primorsk.
Maritime law
The Bornholm Strait is narrow (about 20 nautical miles wide), which means that the countries’ territorial waters meet. Sweden and Denmark have agreed on a median line that divides the strait. Both countries claim a boundary of 12 nautical miles , but where the distance is less than 24 nautical miles, the boundary runs along the median line according to an agreement from 1984.
Due to the status of the Boreholm Strait as an international strait, ships from all nations have a strong right of transit passage. The starting point is the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
The Bornholm Strait is classified as an international strait where the principle of transit passage applies. This means that ships (and aircraft) have the right to uninterrupted and rapid passage without coastal states being allowed to obstruct them, as long as they comply with international rules for maritime safety and the environment.
Environmental regulations
The entire Baltic Sea is classified by the IMO as a PSSA ( Particularly Sensitive Sea Area ). This gives Sweden and Denmark the right to impose higher requirements on ships in the Baltic Sea regarding:
- Oil and waste discharges.
- Reporting obligation for ships with dangerous cargo (via the SOUNDREP system if they also pass through Öresund, or via general Baltic Sea rules).
Transshipment of oil between tankers (so-called STS transfer, Ship-to-Ship) occurs frequently in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Gotland. Whether this is the case for Flora 1 is unknown. This activity involves major environmental and safety risks. The Coast Guard has increased preparedness and surveillance in the area.
Timeline
- March 14, 2026 : Flora 1 arrives in Primorsk (or anchorage outside).
- March 15–April 1, 2026 : The ship is stuck in port due to drone attacks; normal layover time is 2–4 days, but this was over two weeks.
- March 23, 2026 : Large columns of smoke after drone strike at the terminal.
- March 29, 2026 : New attacks damage storage tanks; satellite images show fires near docks.
- March 31, 2026 : The attacks continue to this day.
- April 1, 2026 : Flora 1 leaves Primorsk after loading amidst chaos; heavily loaded (draught ~12 m).
- April 3, 2026 (Good Friday morning) : The Coast Guard patrols the ship east of Gotland after discovering a 12 km oil spill; suspected environmental crime, on EU sanctions list, unclear flag status (Sierra Leone/Cameroon).
- April 3, 2026 : The ship is boarded in the Bornholm Strait by the Coast Guard and police task force; taken to anchorage outside Ystad in Operation Klöver.
/ By Ingemar Lindmark
