A loophole allows foreign ships carrying Russian oil to be transported to the UK but workers refused to unload goods from a ship last week

• The UK government introduced a ban on Russian ships last week, but it doesn't cover cargo.
• When a German-flagged ship arrived at a UK port carrying Russian oil, workers refused to unload it.

The UK government introduced a ban on Russian ships last week, but there's a loophole: The ban doesn't cover cargo. Since then, and because of the loophole, several ships carrying Russian gas or oil have been allowed to dock in the UK, according to the Guardian.

But on Sunday, a German-flagged ship carrying Russian oil hit a different a hold-up when workers in the UK refused to unload it.

The ship, Seacod, was forced to continue on its journey after workers refused to unload the vessel near the Stanlow oil refinery in Ellesmere Port in northwest England, per the Guardian. India's Essar Group owns the Stanlow oil refinery.

The incident came after the Unite union, which represents the Stanlow workers, told Essar on Friday that its members would "under no circumstances unload any Russian oil regardless of the nationality of the vessel which delivers it," the Guardian reported.

The union's general secretary called on the UK government to close the loophole immediately.

—Sharon Graham (@UniteSharon) March 5, 2022

Essar confirmed the incident, saying the vessel had set sail before the invasion of Ukraine and the introduction of UK government sanctions.

In a statement, Essar said it "remains deeply concerned by the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Ukraine and is fully complying with the statutory framework implemented by the UK government with regards to Russia-related entities."

Earlier last week, Essar turned away two cargoes of non-Russian oil that would have been delivered in Russian-flagged tankers, the company added.

"For a number of days, we have been working urgently to find alternative sources of diesel while simultaneously ensuring uninterrupted supply of fuel to the North West of England," Essar said.

The incident highlights the challenges Europe faces as it attempts to move away from its reliance on Russian energy sources.

"Ministers are exploring options to further reduce the already small amount of imports we do get from Russia and we continue to urge Europe to put in place plans to end their dependence on Russian gas," a government spokesperson told the Guardian.

Experts say the tough transition would be difficult.

"If the EU were to impose sanctions that stopped Russian gas flows today, it could muddle through this winter, but struggle to build gas inventories for next winter," wrote analysts at Wood Mackenzie, a commodity consultancy.

"Prices would climb. Industries would need to shut down. Inflation would spiral. The European energy crisis would, we believe, trigger a global recession," the analysts added in a note on February 25.