Greek shipowner defies regional slump to transit Hormuz

A second tanker linked to Greek shipowner George Prokopiou has safely passed through the Strait of Hormuz, even as shipping activity in the area remains sharply reduced because of escalating tensions in the Middle East.

According to Bloomberg ship-tracking data cited in the original report, the tanker Smyrni, managed by Dynacom Tankers Management, was seen off Mumbai on Saturday morning.

Its previous signal had been recorded on Tuesday in the Persian Gulf, suggesting that it had temporarily switched off its transponder while moving through the narrow sea passage.

Its transit followed that of Shenlong earlier this month, making Smyrni the second Dynacom vessel in a row to cross Hormuz at a time when few tankers are choosing to move through the area.

That passage is being watched closely by the market. Navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important routes for crude transport, has been drastically restricted since late February as the conflict in the region intensified.

The near shutdown has already hit oil exports from the Middle East, with storage facilities filling up and some producers being forced to curb output.

Even so, Dynacom is continuing to invest heavily in the crude carrier market. Prokopiou’s company has signed a new agreement with China’s Hengli Heavy Industry for the construction of four additional VLCCs, each with a capacity of 300,000 deadweight tonnes.

With that order, Dynacom’s VLCC building programme at the Chinese yard now stands at 16 ships, forming one of the largest series of supertanker orders placed by a single owner at one shipyard in recent years.

The move reflects Dynacom’s broader strategy of renewing and expanding its fleet as a sizeable part of existing VLCC tonnage moves closer to the end of its economic life.

It also strengthens Hengli Heavy Industry’s standing in the international VLCC market, at a time when Chinese yards are taking on a growing share of demand from leading tanker owners.

The latest developments came as another Greek-linked tanker was caught up in a separate security incident, this time in the Black Sea.

The Greek-flagged tanker Maran Homer, of Maran Tankers and linked to Greek shipowner, Maria Angelicoussis, was hit by a missile around 14 nautical miles off the port of Novorossiysk.

According to the information provided, the incident caused only material damage to the vessel’s starboard side, while the crew remained safe.

There were 24 sailors on board, 10 Greeks, 13 Filipinos and one Romanian, and all were reported to be in good health. The vessel was unladen at the time, remained operational and continued on its course under its own power, without requiring assistance or towing.

In a separate update, the Ministry of Shipping and Insular Policy said the vessel had come under an aerial attack by missile or drone in the sea area off Novorossiysk.

The ministry said there had been no pollution and that all crew members were safe.

Maran Tankers Management said the incident took place on March 14 at around 04:35 local time, while the vessel was sailing outside Russian territorial waters and awaiting orders to enter the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal in Novorossiysk to load Kazakh crude oil.

It said the ship was struck by an unknown object, causing only minor damage to the deck and deck equipment.

Shipping Minister Vasilis Kikilias said the incident “concerns and worries me”, adding that Greece would protest strongly at the level of the European Council and wherever else necessary over what he described as the unacceptable and very dangerous targeting of Greek ships.

He also said no Greek sailor had asked to leave the war zone, adding that “there is an automatic mechanism in place should such a request arise.”

At the same time, Kikilias said he was seeing composure and professionalism, while the situation continued to be monitored closely.