Shots Fired as Pirates Board Tanker off Central African Coast

A bitumen tanker was briefing commandeered by pirates overnight with reports of shots fired. The indication is that the crew was uninjured and that the vessel is back underway after the boarders left the vessel.

The Maritime Domain Awareness for Trade – Gulf of Guinea (MDAT-GoG) first issued the alert saying that it had received a report that an unnamed tanker had been boarded approximately 40 nautical miles southeast of Santo Antonio do Príncipe, on the island of Príncipe in the island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe off the west coast of Central Africa. MDAT-Gog’s last report was that the “unauthorized persons” had cleared the vessel and it was proceeding to Libreville in Gabon for refuge.

The vessel is being identified as the BITU River, a Panama-flagged bitumen tanker operated by Rubis Asphalt, a company that sourced bitumen at the refinery and distributes it across West and Central Africa. The 15,500 dwt vessel was built in China in 2022 and is the fifth bitumen tanker in the company’s fleet. The ship is 475 feet (145 meters) in length and the company reported when the vessel was delivered that it would operate with a crew of 14.

AIS signals show the vessel had departed the anchorage at Lome, Togo and was proceeding to Douala in Cameroon. The security reports said three persons boarded the vessel. It is unclear when the shots were fired, but the company security officer late told MDAT-GoG the pirates had departed. There was no indication if the vessel was robbed or if any crewmembers were kidnapped.

MDAT-GoG reported an incident in a similar location off São Tomé and Príncipe taking place on December 21 and December 22. In that incident the crew was able to secure itself in the citadel. Other recent incidents included an approach off Equatorial Guinea and a fishing boat being attacked off Gabon at the end of January.

Martin Kelly, Head of Advisory at EOS Risk Group, wrote that this region is “the new stomping ground for pirates in West Africa.” He indicates that six vessels have been boarded since January 2024 off Equatorial Guinea and Gabon with 14 crewmembers kidnapped in three pirate attacks.