MISC chemical/palm oil tanker hijacked

Malaysia International Shipping Corporation (MISC) Bhd, the world’s largest operator of liquefied natural gas tankers, said its chemical/palm oil tanker with 39 crewmembers was hijacked by Somalia-based pirates at the Gulf of Aden between Somalia and Yemen. The 32,025 dwt tanker called Bunga Melati Dua was laden with crude palm oil and was en route from Sumatra in Indonesia to Rotterdam in the Netherlands, a statement said. The tanker which is among MISCa13 chemical/palm oil tankers, is the fourth ship to be hijacked in one of the world’s busiest sea-lanes leading to the Suez Canal. Noel Chong, head of the International Maritime Bureau’s Piracy Reporting Center in Kuala Lumpur, said MISC might have little choice but to pay a ransom for the safe return of the vessel and its crew and cargo. “This has been the pattern so far; the hijackers will commandeer the ship from international waters into Somalian territorial waters, and demand a ransom from the ship owners from there,” he said. (August 20, 2008)