A Panama-flagged bitumen tanker was attacked by pirates in the Gulf of Guinea late Monday night, with reports of gunfire during the incident.
The vessel was boarded approximately 40 nautical miles southeast of Santo Antonio do Príncipe, an island in São Tomé and Príncipe, off the west coast of Central Africa.
The attack was first reported by the Maritime Domain Awareness for Trade – Gulf of Guinea (MDAT-GoG), a maritime security cooperation centre run by the UK and French navies.
According to security sources, the ship involved was the Bitu River, a 16,500-dwt bitumen tanker built in 2022. The tanker is operated by Rubis Asphalt and managed by Maritec Tanker Management in India.
The vessel, which had departed from Lome, Togo, was en route to Douala, Cameroon when the attack took place.
Per reports, three armed individuals boarded the tanker. The ship’s speed was observed to decrease from 9 knots to just 0.6 knots within 20 minutes, which suggested a forced boarding.
Gunfire was reported, but no injuries have been confirmed so far. The crew members took refuge in the ship’s citadel, a secure area designed to protect them during pirate attacks.
The ship’s onshore security officer temporarily lost contact with the captain. Later, MDAT-GoG confirmed that the attackers had left the vessel, which then changed course toward Libreville, Gabon, for safety.
Per reports, as many as 10 crew members may have been kidnapped, though this remains unverified. Africa Risk Compliance warned that the pirates may still be operating in the area.
The Gulf of Guinea has been experiencing a rise in pirate activity, with several attacks reported in the past few months.
Martin Kelly, Head of Advisory at EOS Risk Group, recently stated that the region has become the “new stomping ground for pirates in West Africa.”
Since January 2024, at least six vessels have been boarded, leading to the kidnapping of 14 crew members in three separate attacks.
