Despite the US embargo on the machines and their components, supplies of hydroabrasive machines, critical for military equipment production, continue to flow into Russia through third countries, as reported by The Insider. According to the publication, banned American equipment is being delivered via countries such as Turkey, China, Hong Kong, the UAE, and the Maldives.
Hydroabrasive machines are used for high-precision metal cutting, including armor materials. This method, based on a high-pressure water jet with abrasive powder, helps avoid overheating of the processed parts. This is especially crucial when working with alloy steels, where overheating can weaken the material by burning off the alloying elements.
Customs data reviewed by The Insider reveals that in 2024, a hydroabrasive machine from Omax, along with numerous spare parts from manufacturers like Molex, WSI, KMT, AccuStream, and H2O Jet, were imported into Russia. The equipment was supplied by the Russian company "Energy Industries LLC," which has only three employees, and its assets are valued at a modest 18,000 rubles. This suggests an intermediary operation without its own manufacturing capacity.
The machine was procured through Yinuo Supply Chain Management Co., Ltd., registered in Hong Kong. Despite the company's active presence in the Russian market, its official website could not be found.
The Emirati company Gartech FZE supplied American spare parts to the Russian company "R-Garnet," which specializes in abrasive materials. The Turkish company Zarif Group Dis Ticaret A.S. imported American parts for a Czech-made PTV JETS machine, working through its Russian partner, "Tvim" from Yekaterinburg, which, according to its website and the Czech manufacturer, is an official PTV representative in Russia.
Chinese company Huizhou Speed Waterjet Technology Co., Ltd. sold components to the Chelyabinsk-based "Center for the Development of Hydroabrasive Technologies," which services Russian scientific and industrial institutions, including those of Rosatom.
Despite sanctions, dual-use equipment supplies to Russia persist. In early November in Germany, a 56-year-old entrepreneur was sentenced to seven years in prison for supplying machines for sniper rifle production. German companies, according to SWR, conducted over 300 shipments of machines and components for ammunition production to Russia in 2023.
