Stowaway tanker incident not a hijacking: Navios

The master and crew of an oil tanker at the centre of a military operation off the southern coast of England yesterday remained in control of the vessel throughout the incident, a spokesman for the ship's Greek owner Navios told Argus today.

The master of the Nave Andromeda alerted UK authorities yesterday morning when the tanker was six miles off the coast of the Isle of Wight heading to Southampton. He had become concerned for the safety of his crew because of the "increasingly hostile" behaviour of stowaways who illegally boarded the vessel in Lagos, Nigeria, according to Navios.

UK armed forces gained control of the tanker and detained seven people. The Ministry of Defence described the incident at the time as a "suspected hijacking", but a spokesman for Navios said it was a stowaway incident and not a hijacking.

The 75,000t Long Range 1 (LR1) vessel was ballasting back towards Europe after delivering a gasoline cargo to west Africa, according to data from Vortexa. It was awaiting orders for its next voyage.

Navios has paid tribute to the "exemplary response" of the master and the fortitude of the crew, and has thanked UK authorities for their response.

Hampshire police said all 22 crew members are safe and well and the vessel is now alongside in the Port of Southampton. "Investigators are speaking to the crew members to establish the exact circumstances of what happened," police said.

By Will Collins