Ship full of Russian oil forced to move on from North West after workers refused to unload it

A ship moored at a major British oil refinery was forced to move on after workers refused to unload its cargo containing Russian oil.

The German-flagged Seacod was moored at a terminal on the River Mersey at the Stanlow Oil Refinery on Saturday, but had to head north the following day after workers were instructed by their union to not handle a cargo of Russian oil.

The Stanlow Oil Refinery supplies 16% of road transport fuels in the UK, according to the BBC.

Unions have urged the Government to close what they believe is a loophole following a ban on Russian vessels docking in the UK, saying that cargo is not covered.

A Government spokesperson said: “It is mandatory for all ports and harbours to follow legislation banning all ships that are Russian owned, operated, controlled, registered or flagged from entering British ports. The Government will support all ports in exercising their responsibilities.

“We’ll continue to monitor the impact of the situation, but the UK has no issue with gas supply, and unlike other countries in Europe, the UK is in no way dependent on Russian gas, with imports making up just 4% of demand.

“Ministers are exploring options to further reduce the already small amount of imports we do get from Russia and we continue to urge Europe to put in place plans to end their dependence in Russian gas.”

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Stanlow operators Essar added: “Essar remains deeply concerned by the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Ukraine and is fully complying with the statutory framework implemented by the UK government with regard to Russia-related entities.

“Earlier this week, we turned away two cargos of non-Russian origin crude oil which would have been delivered in Russian-flagged tankers.

“We can confirm that a German-flagged vessel was approved to berth at Tranmere Oil Terminal by the Port Authority on Thursday March 3rd.

“This vessel set sail for Tranmere on February 22nd, before the invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent introduction of UK Government sanctions.

“For a number of days, we have been working urgently to find alternative sources of diesel while simultaneously ensuring uninterrupted supply of fuel to the North West of England.”

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukriane, the UK became the first country to ban all ships that are Russian-owned, operated, controlled, registered or flagged from entering its ports.