An Eastern Pacific Shipping-managed product tanker has been hit in an apparent drone attack off the coast of Oman.
The 50,000-dwt Pacific Zircon (built 2013) suffered only minor damage in the attack with no injuries to crew, said the company.
The ship, loaded with gasoil, was struck about 150 miles (241 km) off the coast of Oman at 3.30pm on Tuesday, said the Idan Ofer-owned company. It was sailing from Oman to Buenos Aires, Argentina, according to data analytics provider Kpler.
Nobody immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but it came as the European Union, UK and US imposed new sanctions on Iran in response to drone sales to Russia to support its invasion of Ukraine.
Iran has been blamed for a mysterious series of attacks that targeted shipping, which led to a US-led multinational patrol group being set up in the area in 2019. Iran has been previously accused of targeting Israeli-owned ships.
Preliminary reports suggested that the vessel was hit by a “projectile”, said the company.
“We are in communication with the vessel and there is no reports of injuries or pollution,” it said in a statement.
“All crew are safe and accounted for.
“There is some minor damage to the vessel’s hull but no spillage of cargo or water ingress. Our priorities are to ensure the continuing safety of the crew and vessel.”
The Associated Press cited an unidentified Middle East defence source as saying the ship had been struck by a “bomb-carrying drone”.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations, a British navy organisation operating in the region, confirmed to TradeWinds that an incident was under investigation.
The attack comes at the end of a year when a deal came close to bringing Iran and the US back into an agreement that would lift sanctions on the Islamic republic in return for control on its nuclear programme.
A deal would have allowed Iran to resume oil exports, bringing in much-needed dollars to the regime and easing a supply crunch after Opec+ countries agreed to cut production from this month.
But the deal could not be closed amid mounting tensions with Iran’s leadership. The failure of the talks appeared to be sealed this week, with new sanctions imposed on Iran to punish its military trade with Russia and for the brutal crackdown on unarmed protesters.
