Navy clears the air on seized vessel after oil theft

Ibekimi Oriamaja Reports

The Nigerian Navy refuted claims that the ship MT HEROIC IDUN, which was apprehended, was carrying three million barrels of stolen crude oil on Friday.

The Navy made it apparent that the ship that illegally entered the Akpo Oil Field stormed off without lifting a drop of crude when it detected the presence of a Navy vessel before it was captured near Bioko Island in Equatorial Guinea.

Rear Admiral Saidu Garba, the Nigerian Navy’s Chief of Policy and Plans, revealed at a press conference held at the Naval Headquarters that on August 7, 2022, “it was observed while conducting routine monitoring of the maritime domain that a very large crude oil carrier MT HEROIC IDUN entered the Nigerian maritime environment and headed for Akpo Field without any form of authorization or clearance.

“MT HEROIC IDUN (IMO:9858058) is a three million barrel vessel registered in Marshall Islands with a total length of 336 meters. On August 7, 2022, at midnight, the vessel arrived at Akpo Field with the clear aim to lift crude oil from the field.

The Nigerian Navy’s Maritime Domain Awareness facility, which checked the validity of the carrier’s presence in the Total SA-operated Akpo Field, however, noticed this, he continued. The controlling organization, NNPC Ltd., concluded that the vessel was not authorized to be in Akpo Field after conducting the necessary enquiries.

“This called for the dispatch of the Nigerian Navy Inshore Patrol Craft, NNS Gongola, to look into the activities of the tanker. After arriving at Akpo Field, NNS GONGOLA questioned MT HEROIC IDUN about her mission and approval status. The captain of the ship duly replied and added that it lacked the necessary authorization to operate in the Field. As a result, the ship was given the go-ahead to turn back and accompany NNS GONGOLA to the Bonny anchorage in accordance with standard practice.

“However, after speaking with the Master/Shipping Agent, the Captain declined to assist NNS GONGOLA and claimed that she had been instructed not to follow instructions from the Nigerian Navy Ship.

In addition to putting up a fight against a valid arrest, the captain of the ship broadcast a bogus piracy attack call to the IMB Piracy Reporting Center in an effort to deceive seafarers into thinking that NNS GONGOLA was a pirate ship and, perhaps, create an excuse for her desperate behavior.

The Nigerian Navy was forced to enlist the assistance of Equatorial Guinea, a nearby country, in order to detain the vessel due to the Captain of the ship’s blatant act of disobedience against established authority. Thus, on August 12, 2022, the Equatorial Guinea Amphibious Ship, CAPTAIN DAVID, was directed to track down and detain MT HEROIC IDUN.

While we await diplomatic processes for handing over to the Nigerian Navy, the ship is now being held at Luba Anchorage in Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea, where the nation is completing her investigations.