Malaysian maritime authorities have begun the process of offloading naptha cargo from a tanker that caught fire following a collision with another vessel near Singapore the previous month.
The cargo offloading of the Singapore-flagged tanker Hafnia Nile is being undertaken concurrently with an investigation into the collision with the São Tomé and Príncipe-registered tanker Ceres I on July 19. Singapore, as the flag state of Hafnia Nile, is monitoring the investigation.
The naptha was originally slated for transport to Japan when the incident occurred. S&P Global said Hafnia Nile's owners said another tanker will receive the offloaded cargo.
Fires ignited on board Hafnia Nile and Ceres I shortly after the two tankers collided with each other off the eastern coast of Singapore on July 19. The crews of both ships were later rescued by Malaysian and Singaporean government-owned and good Samaritan vessels.
Malaysian authorities later apprehended Ceres I, claiming that the tanker had switched off its AIS and attempted to flee the area following the collision.
Claire Jungman, Chief of Staff of US-based non-profit United Against Nuclear Iran, had earlier said that Ceres I has been transporting Iranian and Venezuelan oil in violation of UN sanctions since 2019 and 2021, respectively.
UK-based Persian-language news outlet Iran International has meanwhile quoted experts as saying that the area off Singapore where the collision occurred is known for being a venue for illicit ship-to-ship transfers of Iranian oil by the so-called "dark tanker fleet."