LONDON, July 22 (Reuters) – Pirates have released an oil products tanker and its 24 Indian crew after it was hijacked off the Gabon coast last week, the vessel’s operator said on Monday, in the most southerly attack yet off the coast of West Africa.
A surge in piracy in the Gulf of Guinea region including waters off Nigeria, Africa’s No. 1 oil producer and a significant source of cocoa and metals for world markets, is jacking up costs for shipping firms.
Pirates seized the Maltese-flagged Cotton tanker on July 15 near Gabon’s Port Gentil in the first reported attack in that area in the past five years.
Cotton’s Turkish operator, Geden Lines, said on Monday the pirates had left the vessel in the early hours of the morning and its captain had resumed command.
“The master has confirmed that all 24 Indian crew members are safe and in good condition,” Geden Lines said. “The vessel is now on her way to a secure port.”
Unlike waters off the coast of East Africa, where ships can move past at high speed with armed guards on board, many vessels have to anchor off West African coastal nations, with little protection, making them a soft target for criminals.
Another difference between the two areas is that international navies are not engaged in counter-piracy missions off the Horn of Africa, not West Africa.
In a separate incident in the Port Gentil area, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) watchdog said around 20 armed robbers in a speed boat approached and boarded a vessel in mid-July and stole items belonging to the crew before escaping. The IMB said there were no crew injuries or damage to the vessel in the attack.
“All vessels operating in the Gulf of Guinea should remain aware of and prepared for the risk of armed robbery, hijack and kidnap for ransom for the foreseeable future,” security firm AKE said in a report. (Reporting by Jonathan Saul; editing by Jane Baird)
COPENHAGEN, April 15 (Reuters) – Shipping company Maersk has not made any deployment changes after a Portuguese-flagged container ship was seized by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, the Danish company said on Monday. “We find recent...
WASHINGTON, April 15 (Reuters) – The FBI has opened a federal criminal investigation into the deadly collapse of a Baltimore bridge last month when a ship crashed into one of its supports,...
By Daryna Krasnolutska (Bloomberg) Russia and Ukraine may have struggled to shift things significantly on the battlefield for more than 16 months, but a new phase of the war is moving...
April 14, 2024
Total Views: 2113
Why Join the gCaptain Club?
Access exclusive insights, engage in vibrant discussions, and gain perspectives from our CEO.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.