A Norwegian company, Norwegian Ro Marine, issued fake insurance certificates for over 100 vessels, many of which belonged to Russia’s so-called shadow fleet. The fraud was international in scope: ships with forged documents sailed freely, transporting cargoes including Russian oil and weapons, as reported by NRK.
According to journalists, most of the certificates were used by ships involved in Russian energy exports. This included tankers owned by Gatik, the largest operator of Russia’s shadow fleet, and six vessels linked to the gas company Novatek. All of them carried fake insurance from Ro Marine and traveled along the Norwegian coast to the Arctic LNG-2 plant, which is under U.S. sanctions. Other clients included vessels from Iran’s oil and defense sectors.
The scheme was orchestrated by Andrey Mochalin, a Russian citizen living in Saint Petersburg. Previously employed at a reputable Norwegian insurance company, Mochalin became the sole owner of Ro Marine in 2022 after buying out two Norwegian partners. In March 2025, Mochalin, his former partners from Norway, and a Bulgarian citizen were charged with document forgery, illegal insurance activity, and violating sanctions.
Experts describe Ro Marine’s operations as one of the largest cases of sanctions evasion. Sanctions specialist David Tannenbaum noted that the company effectively supported Russia’s shadow fleet, helping Moscow maintain oil exports, a key source of funding for the war against Ukraine.
In some cases, using fake insurance directly provoked NATO countries. In May, Estonian naval forces tried to stop a Ro Marine tanker sailing without a flag. The captain refused to cooperate, after which a Russian fighter jet violated Estonian airspace over the vessel.
Particular concern arises from the transport of dangerous cargo. One vessel with fake insurance reportedly delivered three tons of missile weapons from Saint Petersburg to Algeria.
Despite the scale of operations, Ro Marine operated largely unnoticed for years. In 2021, the company obtained Panamanian flag approval using forged documents. According to Thomas Engelberg, director of Norway’s Maritime Authority, such fraud would be impossible domestically in Norway, but international oversight mechanisms were vulnerable.
Norwegian authorities stress that the lack of legitimate insurance for shadow fleet ships poses environmental and maritime safety risks. The Russian embassy in Oslo responds that Ro Marine is Norwegian and considers sanctions on the shadow fleet a violation of international law.
NRK reports that financial records show millions of Norwegian kroner related to Ro Marine flowed through Mochalin’s accounts in Russia. Mochalin himself is reportedly in hiding and unresponsive to inquiries.
