Hijacked M.V. Sirius Star Released

ZUMA Press Inc - 1038 days ago
Hijacked M.V. Sirius Star Released
Jan. 9, 2009 - Indian Ocean, Somali - A small aircraft observed by the U.S. Navy as it flies over the M.V. Sirius Star during an apparent payment via a parachuted container to pirates holding the Sirius Star. Somali pirates have released the Sirius Star tanker seized off the Kenyan coast in mid-November, an official at the Saudi Oil Ministry confirmed. The supertanker carrying 100 million dollars-worth of crude oil was seized some 830 kilometres off the Kenyan coastal city of Mombasa. Sirius Star is an oil tanker owned and operated by Vela International Marine based in the United Arab Emirates and is a subsidiary of the Saudi Arabian state oil company Saudi Aramco. With a length overall of 1,090 feet (330 m) and a capacity of 2.2 million barrels (350,000 m3) of crude oil, the ship is classified as a very large crude carrier or VLCC. Sirius Star is one of Vela's 24 tankers, of which 19 are VLCCs. Since its launch, the ship has been registered under the Liberian flag and homeported in Monrovia. Hijacked by Somali pirates on November 15, 2008, becoming the largest ship ever captured by pirates. The ship was en route from Saudi Arabia to the United States by way of the Cape of Good Hope. At the time of the attack, it was about 450 nautical miles (520 mi; 830 km) southeast of the coast of Kenya, carrying 25 crewmen and its tanks fully loaded with oil. The ship was estimated to be worth approximately US50 million, with its cargo worth at least US00 million. Sirius Star was released on January 9, 2009, after the payment of a ransom. Media reports had said the pirates had demanded between 2 million and 25 million dollars for the return of the supertanker