An LNG tanker carrying US cargo to Europe suffered a systems failure in the Mediterranean early this month that its crew suspects was a cyberattack. The Vivit Africa turned away from its Italian destination and is now sailing back toward Spain while investigators look into the cause.
The Vivit Africa LNG lost access to some internal control systems while sailing east through the Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas toward Italy, according to a Bloomberg report cited by Investing.com on Friday. The crew reported the failure as a suspected cyberattack.
It was carrying cargo loaded at Louisiana's Cameron LNG terminal after crossing the Atlantic from the United States. Vitol Group, the trading company holding the ship under a long-term time charter, confirmed the arrangement but offered no further comment.
Ship reverses course from Italy
The tanker stopped off the coast of Italy without unloading its cargo, then on Wednesday began sailing away from its intended destination of Rovigo. Shipping data compiled by Bloomberg show it heading back toward the Spanish port of Algeciras, near the Mediterranean's entrance.
Crew members reported the incident early last week to Korean Register, which serves as technical and safety adviser to the South Korean-owned vessel. Investigations are ongoing, and there are no indications yet of who may be behind the suspected attack.
Italian Coast Guard steps in
The Italian Coast Guard assisted the vessel after its master reported "a malfunction in the systems used to monitor cargo parameters", Captain Roberto D'Arrigo said in an emailed statement. Technicians from the company intervened, but the cause of the problem could not be identified.
Separately, the Chioggia Coast Guard said it intervened solely for navigation safety, issuing an urgent notice to mariners to keep their distance from the ship.
Part of a wider pattern
The suspected hacking follows other incidents in late August, when two oil and gas tankers off the US coast were boarded by the Coast Guard and FBI over potential cyberattacks. American officials are monitoring nearly 20 ships around the world for similar threats.
Source: Commodities & Futures News
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