Indian crude oil tanker sails safely from UAE's Fujairah port after drone attack
'Jag Laadki' fourth vessel to have come out of war zone | Monitoring situation closely: Govt
An Indian-flagged crude oil tanker had a close shave after the key oil export hub at the UAE's Fujairah came under attack on Saturday while it was loading cargo, officials said here.
The tanker, Jag Laadki, carrying about 80,800 tonnes of Murban crude oil, sailed safely from Fujairah at 10.30 am (IST) on Sunday and is bound for India, with all crew members safe, they added. It was positioned at the Fujairah Single Point Mooring on Saturday when drones struck the oil terminal, triggering fires and forcing a temporary suspension of some loading operations at the port.
The incident briefly disrupted oil loading activities at Fujairah, one of the world’s most important bunkering and oil storage hubs, but operations gradually resumed by Sunday. Jag Laadki remained unharmed and went on to complete its loading operation.
Jag Laadki is the fourth Indian-flagged vessel to have come out of the war zone unharmed. On Saturday, two Indian-flagged LPG carriers -- Shivalik and Nanda Devi -- carrying about 92,712 tonnes of LPG crossed the Strait of Hormuz. Shivalik is due to reach Mundra port in Gujarat on Monday, and Nanda Devi would dock at Kandla port on March 17, according to the update.
The two ships were among the 24 ships that were stranded on the west side of the strait since the war broke out in the region.
Besides the 24 on the west side of the strait, four others were stranded on the east side. One of the four on the east side, an India-flagged oil tanker, Jag Prakash, carrying gasoline from Oman to Africa, crossed the war-hit strait on Friday. It is now headed to Tanga in Tanzania and is due to reach there on March 21.
The government said Indian vessels and seafarers operating in the region remained safe, and maritime operations were being closely monitored. At present, 22 Indian-flagged vessels with 611 seafarers remain on the west side of the Persian Gulf region.
Meanwhile, located on the Gulf of Oman outside the Strait of Hormuz, Fujairah is a crucial node in global oil logistics. The port handles more than 1.7 million barrels of crude and petroleum products per day and hosts the Middle East’s largest commercial storage capacity for refined fuels.
The Fujairah facility has faced disruptions in recent weeks as well. Earlier drone interceptions and falling debris reportedly damaged storage tanks and temporarily affected operations in the oil industry zone earlier this month.
The latest incident has heightened concerns over the safety of commercial shipping and energy infrastructure across West Asia, home to some of the world’s busiest oil transport routes.
