The seizure of a supertanker with a three million barrel oil storage capacity—roughly three times Nigeria’s current production rate of one million barrels per day (bpd)—confirms the widely held belief that foreign collaborators are involved in siphoning the nation’s oil wealth in collusion with a thieving organization and high-ranking government officials.
The tanker’s capacity reveals the size and scope of the theft of the valuable resource, which deprives the nation of much-needed foreign currency.
After the 300,000 metric tons facility escaped from its forces, the Nigerian Navy revealed late Wednesday that the ship in question had been apprehended in Equatorial Guinea.
The inability of the government to produce dollars from its primary source, the export of crude oil, has recently had a significant negative impact on the Nigerian economy.
Nigeria’s OPEC quota for August is 1.826 million, a deficit of about 700,000 to 800,000 barrels per day (bpd), despite the country’s production in recent months varying between 1 million and 1.1 million bpd.
The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, hinted that while local oil theft had been somewhat contained, there were some international cartels involved in the theft of Nigeria’s oil during the unveiling of the new Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs) with its partners last week.
According to Kyari, Nigeria is putting in place a reliable system to designate its crude exports so that consumers can quickly identify stolen crude. Additionally, he said that going forward, any foreign collaborators will be punished in accordance with international law.
A source told reporters that the Nigerian Navy’s Falcon Eye Maritime Domain Awareness system had seen the supertanker, MT HEROIC IDUN, a Large Crude Carrier (VLCC), arrive at the Total SA-operated Akpo offshore oil field at midnight on August 8 for loading operations without valid documents, particularly the NNPCL clearance.
The Martial Island-flagged supertanker with the IMO No. 9858058 is a 336-meter vessel that can load around three million barrels of Nigerian petroleum, according to the navy source.
The source claimed that her position in Nigerian waters and close proximity to the Akpo Oil Field required further investigation from NNPCL, which confirmed that the vessel’s presence and proposed loading operation were illegal because the agency lacked the necessary clearance.
According to reports, NNPC called Total SA and demanded more details about the supertanker’s anticipated loading operation at the Akpo offshore oil field in order to further clarify her purpose.
MT HEROIC IDUN was intercepted and questioned by NNS GONGOLA in the area of the Akpo oil field based on the information received about her unusual presence in Nigerian waters.
According to the source, “on NNS GONGOLA’s arrival at the area and communication with MT HEROIC IDUN, inquiry revealed that the vessel had 26 crew members on board, consisting of 16 Indians, 8 Sri Lankans, 1 Filipino, and 1 Pole.
The MT HEROIC IDUN’s captain additionally disclosed that the ship had arrived at the oil field to load crude bound for Ziba in Equatorial Guinea. As originally reported by NNPC, further questioning revealed that MT HEROIC IDUN lacked the necessary documentation for the scheduled loading operation at Akpo Oil Field.
“All attempts to obtain clarity and additional information regarding the loading procedure from the proprietors of Idun Maritime Limited and the shipping agent of Inchcape Shipping proved futile.”
The source reported that the ship was instructed to head to Bonny Fairway for inspection after failing the initial test.
Despite many warnings, it was learned that the captain of the MT HEROIC IDUN purposefully disobeyed the order. According to reports, the skipper made an apparent attempt to avoid capture by picking up speed and changing course toward the limits of the Nigeria-Sao Tome and Principe Joint Development Zone.
The source added that preliminary investigation revealed the captain’s claim that the shipping agency had told him not to follow the Nigerian Navy Ship’s command.
The skipper falsely reported that the ship was under attack by pirates despite the fact that MT HEROIC IDUN had been identified and had been in contact with NNS GONGOLA. This was done to avoid being apprehended.
“This false behavior by the MT HEROIC IDUN and her shipping agent give a strong indication that the vessel was, indeed, in Nigeria to load crude oil illegally and, hence, the frantic defiance to dodge capture,” the source continued.
The fact that the ship had previously answered all inquiries made by the Nigerian Navy Ship, verifying its identification of NNS GONGOLA and disproving their bogus allegation of being attacked by sea pirates, serves as additional support for this.
The source claims that the ship has now been apprehended by the Equatorial Guinea Navy with the aid of information provided by the Nigerian Navy. It stated that the ship needed to get the proper punishment for entering Nigerian seas without the required authorization as well as for defying orders and evading capture by a Nigerian Navy ship.
It said, “It is anticipated that the vessel would be turned over to Nigeria for additional examination.
The Nigerian Navy, meantime, announced the vessel’s detention and explained how it managed to elude capture and how the skipper labeled Nigerian authorities as sea pirates.
Findings revealed that the tanker belonged to Hunter Tankers AS, which has its home in Scandinavia, Norway, but was operated by Trafigura Maritime Logistics, which is based in the Netherlands.
It was established that the vessel had arrived at the Total Safe Anchorage (SA) run by Akpo Oil Field for loading operations, but that it had been detained by the Nigerian Navy for questioning and later found to be lacking the necessary NNPC approval.
However, on August 8, 2022, MT HEROIC IDUN went forward with the loading operation at the Akpo Single Buoy Mooring (SBM), according to the navy source.
“The Nigerian Navy Ship GONGOLA prevented MT HEROIC IDUN from continuing since she had not submitted her NNPC approval paperwork for the loading procedure. The captain of the MT HEROIC IDUN then disclosed that he had been told not to follow any orders from the Nigerian Navy by Messrs Inchape Shipping, the company that owns IDUN Maritime Limited.
The supertanker fled toward the Nigeria-Sao Tome Joint Development Zone Area after the VLCC refused to halt when NNS GONGOLA ordered it to. MT HEROIC IDUN claimed her contact with NNS GONGOLA as a sea robbery/pirate attack on several international maritime security watch platforms in an effort to be sneaky and rationalize her escape.
Rear Admiral Istifanus Albarra, who is the head of the Regional Centre for Maritime Security for West Africa in Abidjan, was quoted as saying that on August 9, 2022, the Regional Center (CRESMAO) received a report from the Multinational Maritime Coordination Center (MMCC) of an attempted boarding of a tanker between 10 and 15 nautical miles (Nm) of Akpo oil field in Nigeria. This report, however, added the false alarm of a sea robbery attack.
According to Commodore Olukayode Ayo-Vaughan, the Nigerian Navy’s spokeswoman, an investigation by radio communication with the tanker discovered that it lacked the necessary paperwork for its intended use.
The head of CRESMAO was also described as stating that the tanker’s captain refused to comply, changed course to proceed near Sao Tome and Principe, and then purposefully made a false alarm to the International Maritime Bureau (IMB).
The news of MT HEROIC IDUN’s detention by the Equatorial Guinean Navy on August 12, 2022, just four days after the supertanker felt she had eluded capture, was received with great joy by the navy.
The Nigerian Navy issued a harsh warning to criminals, their sponsors, and con artists, saying that it will stop at nothing to ensure the safety and security of Nigeria’s nautical environment and the compliance of existing laws by all maritime players inside the NME.
