The mystery around Friday’s apparent allsion between a Hafnia chemical tanker and an anchored VLCC near the eastern side of the Singapore Strait deepened as Malaysia confirmed it is now searching for the Chinese-owned tanker and possible additional casualties aboard the vessel. Speaking at a press event on Saturday, Malaysian officials raised numerous concerns about the VLCC Ceres 1, which is registered in São Tomé and Príncipe.
“So far, Malaysian Maritime has not been able to confirm the actual condition of the ship and crew of MT Ceres 1 since it is not contactable,” they reported during the briefing.
Malaysia reports that it dispatched two offshore patrol boats to the area today and the Ceres 1 is no longer at the scene of the accident which is approximately 25 nautical miles north of Malaysia. The officials are accusing the Ceres 1 of turning off its AIS signal and moving from the position where it was anchored when it was struck early on …