Sovcomflot has sold about a dozen ships to buyers in Asia and the Middle East, according to people familiar with the matter, as the Russian state-controlled company works to repay loans to Western banks ending business ties to comply with sanctions.
The company, among the world’s largest tanker operators, sold five tankers to Dubai-based Koban Shipping and four natural-gas carriers to Singapore-based Eastern Pacific Shipping, the people said. Eastern Pacific paid $700 million to a bank that had taken ownership of the vessels.
