Pirate attacks in the Gulf of Guinea, July 2013

Source: Office of Naval Intelligence (unclassified)

19 July: The Vanuatu-flagged offshore supply vessel C Viking (2197 GT) was boarded at the Usari Oil Field off the coast of Nigeria. Pirates looted the vessel and destroyed equipment on the bridge before disembarking.

18 July: The United States-flagged bulk carrier Liberty Grace (28836 GT) experienced an attempted boarding attempt in the Lome anchorage area off the coast of Togo. The crew of the bulk carrier used a spotlight, fire hoses and flares to repel the boarding attempt. A patrol boat from the Togo Navy arrived after the incident.

16 July: The Marshall Islands-flagged tanker Ocean Centurion (23328 GT) was hijacked at 05:29N – 001:38 E, approximately 46nm southeast of Lome, Togo. Armed pirates in 2 speed boats approached, boarded and hijacked the tanker while underway. They took hostage all the crew members, looted personal belongings, and ordered the Master to steer towards the Togo/Benin border. The pirates disembarked and escaped via speedboat, 12nm from the coastline. Two crew members were injured during the hijacking and were transferred ashore for medical treatment. A patrol boat from the Togo Navy arrived after the incident.

15 July: The Malta-flagged chemical tanker Cotton (23248 GT) was hijacked at 00:26 S – 008:51 E, approximately 13nm off Port Gentil, Gabon while underway. Approximately 25 gunmen armed with AK-47 assault rifles hijacked the tanker and took its crew hostage. The vessel was released, with all crew safe, on 22 July.

14 July: The Gabon-flagged landing craft Renovation (940 GT) was boarded while underway off Port Gentil, Gabon. Approximately 20 gunmen boarded the landing craft, looted the crew’s personal possessions and escaped.

10 July: An anchored chemical tanker experienced a suspicious approach at 06:17 N, – 003:21 E, approximately 5.4nm southwest of Fairway Buoy, Lagos. The tanker’s armed security team fired one warning shot when the small boat came within 50m of the vessel, causing the boat to depart the area.

7 July: Gunmen boarded a supply vessel at 04:24 N – 007:03 E, in the vicinity of the New Calabar River, Nigeria while the vessel was underway. The captain, chief engineer and a deckhand were reported to have been taken hostage.

5 July: An anchored bulk carrier was boarded at 06:26 N – 003:23 E at Lagos, Nigeria. Armed men were spotted by the boatswain who alerted the duty officer. The boatswain was wounded by gunfire before other crew members came to his assistance. The gunmen escaped by speedboat. The injured crew member was hospitalized for treatment.

Pirates hijack tanker in Gulf of Guinea, 24 hostages

While we’re still focused on piracy along the East African coast (and rightly so… let’s not take our eyes off that ball) we should be paying increased attention to piracy in the Gulf of Guinea – West Africa’s own “Pirate Alley.” International support must be provided to local, poorly-equipped navies. They cannot win this fight alone.

Pirates Hijack Tanker Off Gabon as Shipping Risks Spread

Pirates have hijacked an oil products tanker with 24 crew on board off the Gabon coast, the vessel’s operator said on Wednesday, as a surge in such attacks in West Africa’s mineral-rich Gulf of Guinea threatens regional shipping.

The pirates are thought to have boarded the Malta-flagged Cotton tanker, carrying a partly loaded cargo of fuel oil, on Monday near Port Gentil, Gabon, in the first reported attack in that region in the past five years, Turkish operator Geden Lines said.

“The company is in contact with the families of the 24 Indian crew members on board and the appropriate authorities have been contacted,” Geden Lines said in a statement.

The Gulf of Guinea, which includes Nigeria, Ghana and Ivory Coast as well as Gabon, is a major source of oil, cocoa and, increasingly, metals for world markets. International navies are not actively engaged in counter-piracy missions in the region.

“The attack occurred around 200 nautical miles (NM) further south than the previous most southerly attack, which was around 160NM southwest of Bonny Island (in Nigeria) on 26 April,” security firm AKE said.

“It therefore marks a significant expansion of the geographical range of Gulf of Guinea piracy. It also demonstrates the regional nature of the illegal fuel trade, the supply of which tankers such as Cotton are generally hijacked for.”

Unlike waters off Somalia and the Horn of 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.

http://www.maritime-executive.com/article/UPDATE-Pirates-Hijack-Tanker-Off-Gabon-as-Shipping-Risks-Spread-2013-07-17/