STX Pan Ocean’s first VLOC has been damaged at a Brazilian port and is taking on water.

The 400,000-dwt Vale Beijing has a crack in its ballast tank, a source at the South Korean owner tells TradeWinds.

It is not yet clear how the ship was damaged and class inspectors are looking into the incident.

An operation to pump water from the giant bulker has begun at Ponta da Madeira, Bloomberg reports.

The STX PO source was unable to provide any details about the extent of the damage or comment on whether the ship was in danger of sinking.

The incident comes less than three months after the Vale Beijing was delivered.