Another Project 1577 tanker, Volgoneft-212, broke in two and foundered nearby in the same storm, causing the 2024 Kerch Strait oil spill.

[3] One Russian source stated that Volgoneft-239 was unfit for service in sea conditions with waves more than 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) high.

In seas any higher than 2 metres, waves could lift her fore and aft, and leave her unsupported amidships, which could cause her structural damage.

[4] Nevertheless, in December 2024 she left the port of Azov on the river Don, carrying a full cargo of about 4,200 tonnes of oil.

On 15 December, a storm caught Volgoneft-239 and one of her sister ships, Volgoneft-212, in the Black Sea just south of the Kerch Strait.

[8] Within hours, after it was known that a member of Volgoneft-212's crew died, the IC reclassified its investigation into the loss of that ship to the more serious offence of "Violation of the rules and operation of maritime transport, resulting in the death of a person by negligence".

[12] Also on 19 December, in his annual "Results of the Year" news conference, President Vladimir Putin blamed the two captains.