Malaysia to Boost Search Efforts for Missing Oil Tanker

Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak promised to increase the government’s efforts to locate the oil tanker MT Orkim Harmony which went missing 17 nautical miles southwest of Pulau Aur, Malaysia, on June 11.

The Malaysian-flagged tanker had 22 crew members comprising Indonesians, Malaysians and Myanmar nationals on board at the time of the accident, and was carrying 6,000 metric tonnes of ULG 95 petrol.

”I am distressed by the news of the missing Malaysian-owned tanker,” Prime Minister Razak said in a Facebook post.

”I pray for the safety of the 22-strong crew of which 16 are Malaysians. My thoughts are with their families. The Government will deploy our resources to locate it.”

The Royal Malaysian Navy currently has three vessels with 150 personnel engaged in the search operations, and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) is searching for the tanker with a helicopter, three ships and a boat.

This hijacking was the second pirate attack targeting Orkim vessels off Pulau Aur this month.

Orkim Harmony’s sister vessel, Orkim Victory was siphoned off 770 metric tonnes of Automotive Diesel Oil on June 4, approximately 15.2 nm southwest of Pulau Aur.

World Maritime News Staff