Ship packed with explosive Russian fertiliser floating off England’s south coast

Maltese-flagged Ruby is carrying 20,000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate – seven times the amount that caused 2020 Beirut port blast

A cargo ship with links to Russia packed with explosive fertiliser is floating off the Kent coast after being denied entry at other ports over safety fears.
Ruby, a Maltese-flagged cargo ship carrying 20,000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate fertiliser from a port in Russia, was ordered out of Tromso in Norway and turned away from Danish waters.
The ship is carrying seven times more explosives than the amount that caused the deadly Beirut port blast in 2020.
It is now floating three kilometres outside British waters north of Margate, east of the Thames Estuary, seemingly awaiting permission to enter the Strait of Dover. It is travelling with the assistance of a tugboat.
In order to enter the Dover Strait and continue its journey to Malta, it must report its presence, including the ship’s condition and any hazardous cargo to authorities.
The ship has been seeking a port for it to dock in as it is in need of repairs, having cracked its hull after previously running aground.
Jens Wenzel Kristoffersen, a defence analyst at Nordic Defense Analysis and a former naval officer, questioned why the ship had not been ordered to return to Russia.
He said that its condition and cargo posed an environmental and health risk.
“One can question whether it is at all justifiable for the ship to be allowed to sail. There are several reasons for this,” he told Danish media. “It has cracks in the hull. It has rudder problems. It can no longer sail by itself, but must be towed.”
He added: “This is a ship that nobody wants, but that nobody can get rid of.”
In Beirut, 2,750 tonnes of fertiliser caused the explosion that devastated Lebanon, in 2020, causing 218 deaths and more than 7,000 injuries.
Although its destination, according to marine tracking data, is Malta, a spokesman for the Maltese transport ministry told local press that without emptying its cargo, it would not be allowed in Maltese waters.
The tugboat, which has accompanied Ruby from Norway, is also under the Maltese flag.
The ship set sail from Kandalaksha, on the Kola peninsula in Russia, where the fertiliser was loaded and where it is believed to have run aground.
It took shelter in the Norwegian city of Tromso for repairs, where six deficiencies including a cracked hull, unlawful fuel, various safety issues and expired crew documents were discovered.
It has also been reported to have engine and rudder problems. However, Tromso authorities moved the ship on from its mooring near a major hospital and university, over fears its explosive cargo posed a risk to the city.
It has since moored near the Andoya Nato air base and requested permission to go to Klaipeda in Lithuania, but Lithuanian authorities said it would need to offload its cargo before docking.
While ammonium nitrate is explosive, it requires a significant trigger, making it generally safe and stable during transport.
Dan Kaszeta, an expert in chemical weapons defence, told The Times: “It needs a lot of odd circumstances to be a hazard, like being stored poorly in Beirut with a bunch of fireworks.”
Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a chemical weapons expert and former Nato chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear commander, warned that while ammonia nitrate is a common fertiliser, it is also “the favoured substance for explosives by terrorists and the Taliban who created devastating fertiliser bombs which killed many British soldiers in Afghanistan”.
He said: “Terrorists like [ammonia nitrate] because it is easy get hold of and only needs a very basic acceleratant to create a devastating explosion – one tonne of AN is roughly equivalent to one tonne of conventional explosives like TNT – 2500 tonnes of AM blew up in Beirut causing what is thought to be the largest conventional explosion on earth.”
“The amount of AM on this Russian boat is 10x this and would be equivalent explosive power to one of Putin’s tactical nuclear weapons – this vessel should be treated with kid gloves and returned to Russia asap –  in normal times this would be a concern but not a national threat but as Putin has yet again threatened the UK with attack and nuclear level attack there must be an urgency to get this ship well away from the UK.”
Tom Sharpe, a retired navy commander, said the incident with Ruby was a reminder that all areas of UK maritime needed to be protected.
He told The Telegraph: “When we talk about defending the UK, it needs to be across all domains and all methods, from conventional attack to cyber to something like this. 
“What if the MV Ruby hadn’t flagged its many issues previously and the first we knew was it exiting the Dover Strait, turning hard into the Thames and was increasing to full ahead?
“In this instance, there is a team in Poole who have the answer but it does show that we shouldn’t leave any stones unturned when it comes to maritime defence of the UK.”
The cargo ship is currently owned by a Dubai-registered company and records show it has been chartered by another Dubai-registered company with links to Russia.
Campaigners have previously warned that unseaworthy Russian oil tankers travelling through the Strait of Dover posed a risk of causing billions of pounds of environmental damage.
The Telegraph understands that the Royal Navy is not currently involved in the passage of the ship. However, they are “keeping an eye” on the situation and will be ready to assist if asked. 
HM Coastguard and the Ministry of Defence were contacted for comment.