There were fires on two LNG tankers, the offshore processing ship / floating storage unit Energos Winter (IMO 9256614) and LNG tanker GasLog Salem (IMO 9638915) on July 29th after one of them was hit by a drone at Damietta Port in Egypt. All of the crew aboard both vessels were reported safe and uninjured.
Maritime security firm Ambrey assessed that an unidentified drone struck the US-owned, Marshall Islands-flagged Energos Winter, causing a fire that later spread to the Bermuda-flagged Gaslog Salem.
Another security source reported that both vessels were struck by projectiles. The Energos Winter was reportedly hit on its starboard side, while the GasLog Salem sustained damage close to its forward cargo tanks, the second source claimed.
The Egyptian government confirmed that there were fires aboard both the vessels at the Damietta Port, although initially it did not mention a drone attack or identify the cause of the incident. It later confirmed that it had indeed been a UAV attack that caused the fires.
The crews of both vessels and emergency services including the firefighting and security team responded quickly, and the fires aboard both ships were extinguished with limited damage.
The Egyptian Petroleum Ministry has reported that there were no fatalities or injuries. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.
The vessels were moved away from their berths and remained offshore from Damietta following the incident. Inchcape Shipping Services said an explosion occurred during cargo-discharge operations and temporarily forced a partial closure of the terminal, although activity at unaffected berths resumed overnight.
The 138,250 cu m Energos Winter is operated by US-based Energos Infrastructure and forms part of Egypt’s expanded floating LNG import system. The vessel can deliver up to 650m standard cu ft of regasified gas per day and is one of four FSRUs deployed to support the country’s gas network.
The 155,000 cu m GasLog Salem is a 2015-built LNG carrier operated by GasLog.
2004-built, 95,970 gt Marshall Islands-flagged Energos Winter is owned by Energos Winter Corp care of Wilhelmsen Ship management Ltd-USA of Pasadena, Texas. It is entered with Gard AS on behalf of Energos Winter Corp. As of July 30th the 277m x 43.3m vessel was moored at Damietta, Egypt, Eastern Mediterranean.
2015-built, Bermuda-flagged, 98,075 gt Gaslog Salem is owned by CL Gas Ten Ltd care of GasLog LNG Services of Piraeus, Greece. It is entered with West (European Claims Team) on behalf of CL Gas Ten Ltd. As of July 30th the 285.12m x 43.4m vessel was at anchor at Damietta, Egypt, Eastern Mediterranean.