A handysize bulk carrier owned by Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) was reportedly attacked by pirates on Monday amid a rise in piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.
According to maritime risk consultancy Dryad Global, the 22,600-dwt Vinalines Mighty (built 2007) was attacked 143 nautical miles northwest of Sao Tome.
The vessel was transiting between Douala, Cameroon and Liberia.
“It is believed that the vessel has been boarded by three pirates. It is understood that crew are safe,” Dryad Global said.
State-owned Vinalines did not respond to a request for comment.
Based on Dryad’s estimates, this is the ninth maritime security incident in 2019 to occur beyond the southern and eastern fringes of the Nigerian economic exclusion zone (EEZ) .
“Whilst this area has witnessed maritime crime in previous years, only two incidents were recorded in 2017 and two in 2018 respectively,” Dryad added.
The news emerged after a BW LNG vessel was attacked on 28 December when passing between the islands of Sao Tome and San Antonio.
Evasive action
The 150,000-cbm LNG Lokoja (built 2006) managed to fend off the attack through evasive maneuvering.
The Gulf of Guinea has been a high-risk piracy hot spot, with recent attacks shifting their focus from oil cargo theft to holding crews for ransom.
The region accounts for nearly 82% of crew kidnappings globally in the year to October, according to a report issued by the International Maritime Bureau.
“There is a clear trend and concentration of incidents occurring along the eastern fringe of the Nigerian EEZ and in the waters beyond,” according to Dryad.
“It is clear that pirates are aware of the limitations of security force protection in the area beyond the Nigerian EEZ and are seeing to exploit the relative absence of protection for commercial vessels.”
The latest incident confirmed “an established trend of incidents that are assessed to be perpetuated by a well-resourced pirate action group, most likely operating from one or more mother ship vessels,” Dryad said.
Dryad has identified the 3,400-dwt tanker Determination 2 (built 1984) as a potential mother ship for pirates.
“All vessels are encouraged to display the highest vigilance and take evasive action on any potential sighting,” the company said.
