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A superyacht owned by Russian oligarch Vladimir Strzhalkovsky, a former KGB agent and longtime ally of Vladimir Putin, is currently stuck in a Norwegian port because no one will sell fuel to it.
“The Ragnar yacht was unable to leave Norway due to discrimination from local fuel suppliers who refuse to refuel the Ragnar yacht,” British ship captain Rob Lancaster wrote in a leaflet in the port of Narvik, Norwegian public broadcaster NRK reported. “The yacht and its ultimate beneficial owner are not on the European or UK sanctions list, so we consider discrimination against us highly unfair.”
The 220-foot boat was originally built in 2012 as an icebreaking support vessel for the fossil fuel industry, but was converted to a yacht in 2020 and now features an elaborate interior, jet skis, an amphibious ATV and a helipad.
Several lawmakers have called on the Norwegian government to confiscate the superyacht, but so far it has been stuck in the port of Narvik, a harbor located in northern Norway.
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Strzhalkovsky, who once served as Russia’s deputy economy minister, received a $100 million golden parachute when he stepped down as CEO of mining company Norilsk Nickel in 2012, the New York Times reported at the time.
The US and European allies have been working to seize the assets of dozens of sanctioned Russian oligarchs since Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
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Earlier this week, Spain seized the 279-foot superyacht Valerie, owned by Sergei Chemezov, a former KGB agent who runs state defense conglomerate Rostec.
“Today we captured – the technical term is temporarily immobilized – a yacht belonging to one of the main oligarchs,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday. “We’re talking about a yacht that we estimate is worth $140 million.”
The superyacht Crescent, detained by Spanish authorities, is moored in the port of Tarraco in Tarragona amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Spain, on March 16, 2022. (REUTERS/Albert Gea)
Spanish authorities also seized the 440-foot superyacht Crescent, owned by sanctioned Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin, on Wednesday.
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Earlier this month, Italian authorities confiscated the $72 million 213-foot Lady M yacht owned by steel magnate Alexei Mordashov, the richest man in Russia with a fortune of $30 billion.
Reuters contributed to this report.