ALMATY — KazMunayGas (KMG) reports that its chartered oil tanker Matilda did not sustain serious damage following a drone attack near the Black Sea loading terminal of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC).
Photo credit: cpc.ru
According to KMG, the tanker Matilda, chartered by its subsidiary Kazmortransflot, was scheduled to load Kazakh crude at the CPC terminal on Jan. 18, while the vessel was attacked by unmanned aerial vehicles on Jan. 13. The company reported that the incident caused an explosion without subsequent fire.
“No crew members were injured. As for preliminary inspection, the vessel remains seaworthy, and no signs of serious structural damage are found. An assessment of the damage is ongoing,” said the company in its statement.
Reuters earlier reported, citing sources familiar with the matter, that several oil tankers were attacked near the CPC terminal, which exports crude via the Black Sea port of Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka, near Novorossiisk.
According to Reuters, Matilda is managed by the Greek shipping company Thenamaris and was expected to load oil from the Karachaganak field. A Thenamaris official confirmed that the tanker was struck by two drones approximately 30 miles offshore while waiting to load.
“There were no injuries, and the ship suffered minor damage to deck structures according to an initial assessment, which is fully repairable. The ship, seaworthy as it is, is now sailing away from the area,” the company representative said, as quoted by Reuters.
Reuters also reported that other tankers, including Delta Harmony and Delta Supreme, managed by Delta Tankers, as well as Freud, managed by TMS Tankers, were affected in separate drone incidents near the CPC terminal. One of the vessels was expected to load crude produced by Tengizchevroil, a unit of Chevron.
