Posted on 10 Jan 2024
The Indian Navy (IN) says it successfully countered an attempted hijack of the Liberian-flagged iron ore carrier MV Lila Norfolk by Somali pirates in the North Arabian Sea.
The IN intercepted the bulk carrier less than a day after it had received a report by the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) that six armed people boarded the vessel near 460 nautical miles off Somalia on 4 January, Kallanish notes.
The vessel is carrying 170,000 tonnes of iron ore shipped from Anglo American's Minas-Rio unit in Brazil. The cargo left the port of Açu in Rio de Janeiro on 6 December and was scheduled to arrive at the Khalifa bin Salman port in Bahrain on 12 January.
The miner declined to comment when approached by Kallanish.
All 21 crew of MV Lila Norfolk are reported to be rescued and safe. IN has already begun an investigation of the suspected vessels in the area.
The ship has restarted navigation under the escort of IN after reestablishing propulsion, power supply and steering gear.
Source:Kallanish
