LAGOS, Nigeria. (Voice Of Naija) A sanctioned Russian oil tanker carrying an estimated 800,000 barrels of crude has been slowly sinking off Oman’s coast for weeks, leaking oil across more than 2,000 square kilometres of the Arabian Sea in what environmental specialists say threatens to become one of the worst maritime oil disasters in years.
The vessel at the centre of the crisis is the Caroline Bezengi, a 274-metre crude oil tanker sailing under a Cameroonian flag, owned by a Shanghai-based company and under both British and European Union sanctions for transporting Russian crude in violation of Western price caps.
The tanker departed from Novorossiysk, a Russian port on the Black Sea that has been a flashpoint in the Russia-Ukraine war, in April 2026.
It passed through the Suez Canal at the end of May before sailing past Yemen, where Iran-aligned Houthi militants have been attacking vessels as part of the wider US-Iran regional conflict.
On June 8, the vessel reported difficulties off Yemen’s coast after what maritime sources told Reuters appeared to be a blast on board. No party has claimed responsibility.
The Caroline Bezengi subsequently ran aground on June 30 near Qibliyah Island in the Hallaniyat archipelago, a designated marine nature reserve off Oman’s southwest coast that is home to some of the world’s most threatened marine wildlife.
Oil leakage was first detected during the first week of July. Since then, largely unchecked by the difficult monsoon conditions blanketing the region, the spill has exploded in scale.
The numbers tell a story of accelerating catastrophe.
According to oil spill specialist John Amos, who reviewed satellite imagery obtained by Reuters, the slick now covers more than 2,000 square kilometres — roughly the area of Greater London.
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Greenpeace, which conducted its own satellite analysis, estimated the spill at approximately 500 square miles or 1,300 square kilometres, noting the pollution consists of several separate fragmented patches rather than one continuous mass, making containment significantly more difficult.
The growth rate has been alarming. The affected area covered approximately 45 square kilometres by the end of July.
By August 4, that figure had risen to 600 square kilometres, a fourfold increase in just two days, according to Greenpeace’s analysis cited by CNN.
By August 11, it had more than tripled again. According to NewsNation, the scale of the spill is now rivalling the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster; one of the most damaging oil spills in history in geographic spread.
On Wednesday, Oman’s Environment Authority confirmed the oil had reached the country’s mainland coast, contaminating approximately 40 kilometres of the Ras Madrakah shoreline, more than 200 kilometres from where the tanker ran aground.
The Environment Authority reportedly said that the slick was also expected to reach the southern beaches of Masirah Island, Oman’s largest island and a major wildlife destination, within hours of that announcement being made
The ecological stakes could hardly be higher. The Hallaniyat archipelago and surrounding waters constitute one of the most biodiverse marine environments in the Arabian Sea.
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According to Al Jazeera, the region is home to the Arabian Sea humpback whale — one of the world’s most endangered whale populations, genetically isolated from other humpback populations and found nowhere else on earth and also provides critical habitat for Socotra cormorants, endangered petrels, sea turtles and extensive coral reef systems and seagrass beds.
Oman’s agriculture, fisheries and water resources ministry confirmed it was monitoring the impact on sea life and local fish products. It advised fishermen to remain away from affected areas and to report unusual smells or visible changes in the water.
According to CNN, Greenpeace campaigner Hanen Keskes warned that the consequences of oil reaching the shore were severe and long-lasting. “Once oil reaches the shore, not only does containment become that much harder, but basically it goes into the sediments and the water, and it becomes embedded for years even after the spill has disappeared.”
British maritime security and salvage company Ambrey confirmed on Thursday it had been engaged to lead the salvage of the Caroline Bezengi and that specialist vessels were en route to the scene.
“This is an extremely challenging situation, compounded by adverse weather conditions associated with the Khareef monsoon,” Ed Wollaston, director of global response at Ambrey, reportedly told Reuters.
The Khareef monsoon, which brings heavy rain, fog and rough seas to Oman’s southern and central coasts between July and September, has severely complicated both containment efforts and the physical approach to the stricken vessel.
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Oman said it had deployed booms in an attempt to slow the spread, but experts said those measures were inadequate given the scale of the pollution.
According to CNN, Greenpeace’s Keskes said the cost of the cleanup and environmental damage would fall entirely on the Omani government because the Caroline Bezengi’s sanctioned status means its owners cannot legally be pursued through normal international maritime compensation channels.
“This means the response and the hefty cost of damages will fall entirely on the Omani government,” she said.
The International Maritime Organisation has reported 65 shipping incidents in the Strait of Hormuz and across the Middle East since the beginning of March 2026, a sharp surge directly linked to the US-Iran war, which has seen tankers targeted by multiple parties across the region.
The Caroline Bezengi is one of the most dramatic consequences of that pattern, having navigated two active war zones before its disastrous grounding.
For Nigeria, the Oman oil spill is more than a distant environmental story. Nigeria is an oil-producing nation whose own Niger Delta has endured decades of catastrophic spills, from Ogoniland to the Bonga deepwater field, that have devastated fishing communities, contaminated freshwater sources and destroyed mangrove ecosystems across thousands of square kilometres.
The Caroline Bezengi disaster is a reminder of what happens when ageing, poorly maintained and legally opaque vessels part of what is now called the global “shadow fleet” navigate the world’s most volatile waters without adequate oversight or accountability.
For the fishermen of Ras Madrakah watching black oil wash onto their beaches this week, the experience is heartbreakingly familiar to communities along the Forcados River and Bonga oilfields who have been making the same call for accountability for decades
