Top Container Line Halts Russian Black Sea Service Due to Drones

The world’s top container shipper MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co. has suspended new bookings to and from Russia’s Novorossiysk port with immediate effect after one of its vessels was attacked by a drone. The decision follows a recent strike on the MSC ULSAN III while it was en route to Novorossiysk, MSC said in a notice to customers seen by Bloomberg News. The company didn’t say when the incident occurred. MSC said it’s closely monitoring the situation, and customers are being advised to contact its Russia agency for possible logistics alternatives for imports and exports until conditions allow the resumption of regular weekly services from the Black Sea port. The company, like other international container lines, has limited its operations in Russia since 2022, when the Kremlin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Typically, remaining shipments to Russia on international lines include goods such as food, clothing and medicines. MSC continues to operate from other Russian ports, including St. Petersburg in the country’s northwest. An employee at the company’s St. Petersburg office confirmed to Bloomberg News that operations in Novorossiysk are currently idled. A request for comment sent to MSC’s press service wasn’t immediately answered. Russia and Ukraine have stepped up attacks on commercial ships and ports in the Black Sea since July, significantly disrupting grain exports from both countries and pushing wheat prices to a three-year high. The strikes have also sharply reduced shipping activity across the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, affecting steel and coal exports from Russia. Photograph: Mediterranean Shipping Co. ships; photo credit: Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg Copyright 2026 Bloomberg. Topics Russia Drones Was this article valuable? Thank you! Please tell us what we can do to improve this article. Thank you! % of people found this article valuable. Please tell us what you liked about it. Here are more articles you may enjoy.