One Killed, 15 Abducted in Gulf of Guinea Pirate Attack

On Saturday morning, a boxship was reportedly boarded by pirates and its citadel breached at a position off Sao Tome, according to security consultancy Praesidium International.

Praesidium reports that at about 0530 hours on Saturday morning, the Turkish-operated container ship Mozart was transiting about 95 nm to the northwest of Sao Tome when she was boarded by four armed assailants. The crew retreated to the vessel’s citadel, but the pirates managed to breach it.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: maritime-executive.com

MDAT-GoG warns of imminent threats in Gulf of Guinea

Source: Reported to MDAT-GoG by RELIABLE SOURCES

Description: MDAT-GOG is aware that there is potential increased threat of piracy activity in the coming hours/days in Areas E / D.
We highly recommend to the seafarer community and ships transiting in these areas to exercise a sharp look-out and apply BMP WA procedure.

Buhari Cancels OMSL’s Controversial Secure Anchorage Area Contract

By Abiodun Eromosele/This Day

President Muhammadu Buhari has cancelled the lucrative but controversial Secure Anchorage Area (SAA) contract handled by Ocean Marine Solutions Limited (OMSL), a highly-placed presidency source told THISDAY yesterday, saying the president has agreed with long-standing security concerns expressed about the deal by senior administration officials.

The contract, in which OMSL in partnership with the Nigerian Navy, has been providing security services to foreign ships calling at the Apapa and Tin Can Island Ports in Lagos at $2,000 per day at a designated area in the water called the Secured Anchorage Area, became controversial when the Minister of Transportation, Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, in February last year announced its cancellation.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: allafrica.com

Piracy surging off West Africa, Angola ready to do something about it

Angola is looking for ways to fight a surge in piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, the Great Lakes region and other areas along its coast.

Secretary of State for the External Relations Esmeralda Mendonca said the growing maritime crime problem is endangering the region from a national, international and regional point of view.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: africa.cgtn.com

‘Why Deep Blue project is still hanging’

By Godwin Oritse

THE much awaited take-off of the Deep Blue Sea project, Nigeria’s maritime security initiative, appears to be in further wait before implementation as some preparatory activities are yet to be in place.

A member of the Monitoring Committee on the project who spoke to Vanguard Maritime Report on the condition of anonymity indicated that though the report of the project committee was awaiting the approval of the Federal Executive Council before it is handed over to the relevant authorities for implementation, training and integration issues are yet to be concluded.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: vanguardngr.com

BIMCO welcomes Danish move on navy in Gulf of Guinea

BIMCO welcomes the appointment of a Danish Special Representative for Maritime Security in the Gulf of Guinea, Ambassador Jens-Otto Horslund.

“While it is understandable that Nigeria does not want foreign navies in their territorial waters, we hope that Ambassador Horslund will be able to garner broad support for an antipiracy operation as mandated by the UNCLOS convention, i.e. in international waters just outside Nigeria’s 12 nautical mile limit,” says Jakob P. Larsen, BIMCO Head of Maritime Safety & Security.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: hellenicshippingnews.com

Nigeria Lost N76bn Worth Of Crude To Pipeline Vandals In 2020

Nigeria lost at least 3.1 million barrels of crude worth about $200m (about N76.3 billion) in 2020 due to activities of pipeline vandals and crude oil thieves.

This figure is contained in a report released by the Nigerian Navy, which x-rays some of its operational activities in 2020. A barrel of crude oil currently sells for 50 dollars per barrel at the international market.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: economicconfidential.com

Piracy Surge Off West Africa Prompts Maersk Call for Action

By William Clowes (Bloomberg) —

The world’s biggest shipping company demanded a more effective military response to surging pirate attacks and record kidnappings off the coast of West Africa.

The number of attacks on vessels globally jumped 20% last year to 195, with 135 crew kidnapped, the International Maritime Bureau’s Piracy Reporting Centre said in a Jan. 13 report. The Gulf of Guinea accounted for 95% of hostages taken in 22 separate instances, and all three of the hijackings that occurred, the agency said.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: supplychainbrain.com

Navy Nabs Oil Thieves, Recovers 100,000 Litres of Diesel in Ondo

James Sowole

The Nigeria Navy said its patrol team of the Operation Base (FOB), Igbokoda, Ondo State, has intercepted six boats loaded with over 100,000 litres of Automotive Gas Oil, popularly known as diesel along Ondo/Lagos coastal axis.

The Navy said the 24 suspected oil thieves conveying the diesel were nabbed at Igbokoda, Ilaje Local Government Area.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: thisdaylive.com

Gulf of Guinea records highest ever number of crew kidnapped in 2020, according to IMB’s annual piracy report

London and Kuala Lumpur, 13 January 2021 – The International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB)’s annual piracy report recorded an increase of piracy and armed robbery incidents in 2020.

In 2020, IMB’s Piracy Reporting Centre (PRC) received 195 incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships worldwide, in comparison to 162 in 2019. The incidents included three hijacked vessels, 11 vessels fired upon, 20 attempted attacks, and 161 vessels boarded. The rise is attributed to an increase of piracy and armed robbery reported within the Gulf of Guinea as well as increased armed robbery activity in the Singapore Straits.

Incidents rise in the Gulf of Guinea

Globally, 135 crew were kidnapped from their vessels in 2020, with the Gulf of Guinea accounting for over 95% of crew numbers kidnapped. A record 130 crew members were kidnapped in 22 separate incidents. Since 2019, the Gulf of Guinea has experienced an unprecedented rise in the number of multiple crew kidnappings. In the last quarter of 2019 alone, the Gulf of Guinea recorded 39 crew kidnapped in two separate incidents.

Incidents in the Gulf of Guinea are particularly dangerous as over 80% of attackers were armed with guns, according to the latest IMB figures. All three vessel hijackings and nine of the 11 vessels fired upon in 2020 related to this region. Crew kidnappings were reported in 25% of vessel attacks in the Gulf of Guinea – more than any other region in the world.

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: icc-ccs.org