A liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker successfully escaped from pirates who were approaching the ship in a speedboat off the coast of Somalia today, Reuters reported, citing maritime security sources.
A recent spate of armed attacks on vessels in the region - including the first attack in a year by suspected Somali pirates - has reignited concerns about the security of sea lanes used to transport critical energy and commodities to global markets.
Today's incident occurred near the site of an attack on the Maltese-flagged tanker Hellas Aphrodite the day before, an official with maritime security firm Diaplous said.
A Marshall Islands-flagged LNG tanker, identified by maritime security sources as the Al Thumama, reported that a small boat with three people on board was approaching them, British maritime risk management group Vanguard and maritime security sources said.
The captain reported that the tanker, which was en route from Ras Laffan in Qatar to Świnoujście in Poland, via the Cape of Good Hope, managed to escape the boat, sources said.
The ship's operator, Japanese firm NYK LNG Shipmanagement, was not immediately available for comment, Reuters reports.
Bonus video:
