On 17 October, Dryad Global said, the Marshall Islands-flagged vessel, known as Methane Princess, was boarded while at anchor off Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.

As reported, shortly after breaking off loading operations, the 138,000 cbm vessel was attacked. The alarm rang and it was possible for all seafarers on deck to withdraw to the citadel. There were injuries to one man entering the citadel.

There were two crew members, Filipino nationals, on the jetty and they were taken hostage by both of them.

One of the members of the kidnapped crew jumped off the pirate vessel and was rescued. He sustained injuries to an unknown extent, however.

No shots were fired, the maritime security intelligence company added.

After the incident, Equatorial Guinea Navy officers onboard a patrol vessel and a frigate were sent to the scene. They performed post-event inquiries along with ministry personnel.

According to its schedule, the tanker departed Malabo and is en route to its next port of call.

The 93,899 GT Methane Princess was built in 2003 at the Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) shipyard in South Korea and is owned and operated by Golar LNG Partners, based in the UK.

The Methane Princess attack coincided with another incident involving an oil / chemical tanker in the Gulf of Guinea. On 17 October, the ship, M/T PTI Nile, was allegedly boarded about 115 nautical miles south of Lome, Togo. Reports indicate that, Dryad Global stated, the entire crew managed to retreat into the citadel and they are all accounted for.

Maritime Business World