The government has allocated 5.8 billion rubles to clean up sunken tankers near Anapa.
The head of the Russian government allocated up to 5.8 billion rubles from the reserve fund to Rosmorrechflot for work in places where tankers carrying fuel oil sank.
As "Caucasian Knot" reported, by June 2025, 9.9 billion rubles have been allocated from the government's reserve fund to raise two tankers carrying fuel oil that sank near the coast of the Krasnodar Territory.
The Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 tankers will be raised from the water in 2026 after the fuel oil under their protective domes (cofferdams) has been completely pumped out. During the first stage, protruding structural elements will be cut off and raised to the surface. The tanker fragments will then be contained using cofferdams at a depth of up to 20 meters, after which the fuel oil will be pumped out and the ship parts and protective structures themselves will be raised to the surface, the Ministry of Transport explained.
The Russian government will allocate up to 5.8 billion rubles from the reserve fund to Rosmorrechflot to localize emergency zones in the areas where the Volgoneft tankers sank, with the aim of subsequently removing them from the Black Sea floor. The corresponding order was signed by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, RBK reports.
According to the document, funds have been allocated for the preparation of hulls, including dismantling individual structural components of sunken tanker fragments, as well as the design, manufacture, and installation of three cofferdams over the sunken fragments. Rosmorrechflot has been instructed to monitor the expenditure of funds and the effectiveness of budget allocations and submit a report to the Russian government by February 1, 2027, according to a publication dated February 11.
As a reminder, work is underway in the Kerch Strait to install piles for cofferdams, while the protective structures themselves have already been installed over the sunken parts of the fuel oil tankers. Pumping will begin only after the piles are installed, Rosmorrechflot reported.
As "Caucasian Knot" reported, the environmental consequences of the fuel oil spill in the Kerch Strait have not been eliminated even a year after the tanker disaster, scientists and authorities in Kuban acknowledged. A representative of the Ministry of Emergency Situations reported that all three cofferdams had been installed, and 29.6 kilometers of protective embankments had been constructed along the coast to protect beaches. However, the protective embankments did not withstand the winter storms; in January, volunteers reported fuel oil spills and partial destruction of the protective embankments. Work to pump fuel oil from the sunken parts of the ships will begin only after the storm season. Prolonged work to pump out fuel oil could lead to the collapse of Anapa as a resort, Telegram users stated.