Tanker Foils Pirate Attack off Brass

Chinazor Megbolu |

Pirates attempt to attack a tanker off Brass, Bayelsa State this week, was foiled by a Turkish Suezmax tanker Istanbul.

The pirate attacked the tanker while sailing some 180 nautical miles southwest of Brass, Nigeria.

The ship, according to a statement obtained online was approached by a high-speed craft with 9 armed men aboard trying to board the vessel.

The report stated the tanker conducted evasive maneuvers and following two failed attempts, the pirates withdrew to a mothership vessel.

“The tanker and crew are unharmed and have continued on their way.

“The Istanbul appears to have taken a south-western track from the Odudu terminal. This inadvertently tracked her vessel through the concentration of 2019 incidents.

“Trends within 2019 have shown a shift in the concentration of incidents from 2017 and 2018 from an area south of Port Harcourt, between the Bonny and Brass terminals, to a linear spread of incidents along the Eastern fringe”.

It further noted the Eastern fringe of the Nigerian side seems to be particularly vulnerable due to the density of energy infrastructure and density of traffic transiting northbound to conduct operations within the Niger Delta region.

According to the statement; “with this confluence of factors and the significant geographic limitation imposed upon Nigerian security forces, pirates operating with both capability and intent are afforded the opportunity to act freely without significant risk of being interdicted”.