Legal

MMEA detains Singapore flagged tanker suspected of illegal oil transfers in Selangor

Vessel was discovered 1.2 nautical miles northeast of Carey Island on its journey from Tanjung Pelepas, Johor to Port Klang on Friday, 29 January, said MMEA.

Published

4 years ago

February 1, 2021

Admin

The Selangor state division of Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) on Saturday (30 January) said it detained a Singapore flagged tanker for allegedly anchoring without a permit and conducting illegal oil transfers on Friday, 29 January.

“The vessel was discovered 1.2 nautical miles northeast of Carey Island at 11.45 am in a joint operation with the Central Region Marine Department,” said Maritime Captain Mohamad Rosli bin Kassim, Diretor, MMEA Selangor.

“As soon as we received the tip off from the Marine Department, our team rushed to the scene and initial investigations revealed that the vessel could have anchored without a permit from the Marine Department.”

MMEA discovered the vessel is a Singapore registered tanker on its journey from Tanjung Pelepas, Johor to Port Klang and is suspected of illegal oil transfers.

Maritime Captain Rosli noted there were 15 crew onboard, all of whom were Indonesian nationals aged between 20 to 64 years old holding proper identification documents.

The Captain, Assistant Engineer and vessel Agent were detained under the Merchant Shipping Ordinance 1952 and were brought to the Selangor State Maritime Headquarters for further investigations.

Maritime Captain Rosli reminded all shipowners any activity in Malaysian waters requires the appropriate permits to be issued by the authorities in order to avoid legal action being taken and that the MMEA is being vigilant to safeguard security in Malaysian waters.

A series of earlier MMEA detentions have been reported by Manifold Times (below) :

Related: MMEA detains Panama flagged tanker for anchoring illegally in eastern Johor
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Related: MMEA detains tanker ‘MT Tahiti’ in Malacca waters for anchoring without a permit
Related: MMEA detains St Kitts & Nevis registered tanker for anchoring illegally in eastern Johor
Related: MMEA detains Malaysia & Mongolia registered tankers for anchoring illegally in Johor
Related: Malaysia: MMEA detains tanker for anchoring without a permit in southeastern Johor
Related: MMEA evicts five international merchant ships from Malaysian waters for illegal anchoring
Related: Malaysia: MMEA detains three vessels for conducting illegal ship-to-ship oil transfer
Related: Malaysia: Captains of two vessels previously detained by MMEA fined MYR 65,000
Related: Malaysia: MMEA Johor detains two vessels in illegal ship-to-ship bunker transfer
Related: Malaysia: MMEA detains Singapore-flagged bunker tanker for anchoring without permit

Photo credit: Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency
Published: 1 February, 2021

Sanctions

Panama comes down hard on sanction-evading ships with de-flagging

Panama Maritime Authority will automatically cancel the registration of any vessel found to be involved in illicit activities or that changes its flag in order to evade sanctions.

Published

3 days ago

October 3, 2024

Admin

The Panama Maritime Authority (PMA) on Wednesday (30 September) announced that, after an internal investigation, it will automatically cancel the registration of any vessel found to be involved in illicit activities or that changes its flag in order to evade sanctions.

This clarification follows the recent inclusion of seven Panamanian-flagged vessels on the list of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

Panama has adopted a series of strategies to reduce the inclusion of vessels on sanctions lists, including:

The monitoring and control section was moved to a protection department that is more aligned with its functions. The Control and Monitoring section was moved from the Department of Navigation and Maritime Safety to the Maritime Ship Protection Department, given its close relationship with international sanctions activities and the surveillance of the merchant fleet.
In September 2024, the “Panama Flag Precheck Process” was published, a circular that establishes prerequisites for flagging and that allows due diligence to be carried out on the vessel, its owner and its operator.
Panama signed the Registry Information Exchange Agreement (RISC) to prevent a ship from moving from one registry to another, seeking to commit some type of illicit activity or trying to evade compliance with imposed sanctions.

The General Directorate of Merchant Marine of the AMP is evaluating additional strategic measures that allow for the expeditious cancellation of the Panamanian flag of vessels with proven links to activities that go against national interests, international instruments or the shipping industry in general.

There are legal mechanisms used to cancel the registration of vessels included in sanctions lists, such as the one described in Article 49 of the General Merchant Marine Law 57, which establishes the causes for automatic cancellations, such as the use of the vessel for smuggling, illegal trade and piracy, among other crimes.

The Panamanian Shipping Registry will not negotiate with anyone who wants to use it improperly and will apply the established legal mechanisms to be able to act according to due process and legal certainty.

In January, it was reported that a group of US senators called PMA to investigate and de-flag tankers that are violating US sanctions on the Iranian oil trade.

Citing data from United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), the letter from the senators to PMA, stated that of the nearly 400 vessels they believe are aiding Iran, the letter reports that nearly half (189) are flagged in Panama.

Photo credit: Luis Gonzalez on Unsplash
Published: 3 October, 2024

Legal

Trial against Hin Leong Trading Founder and children draws to an end

Lim Oon Kuin, also known as O.K. Lim, and his two children have agreed to pay USD 3.5 billion to the liquidators of the troubled oil trading firm but have stated they will apply for bankruptcy.

Published

4 days ago

October 2, 2024

Admin

The 50-day trial involving Founder of Hin Leong Trading, Lim Oon Kuin, also known as O.K. Lim, and his two children approached its conclusion with the trio agreeing to pay USD 3.5 billion to the liquidators of the Singapore-based defunct oil trading company Hin Leong Trading, according to The Straits Times on Tuesday (1 October).

The High Court also approved a consent judgement that the Lim family reached with HSBC Holdings which had sued them and Lim’s personal assistant Serene Seng Hui Choo for USD 85.3 million in damages.

Both cases were jointly heard in the High Court.

In the judgement reached by both parties, the family including Lim’s children, Evan Lim Chee Meng and Lim Huey Ching, have to pay the sum of USD 3.5 billion plus interest at 5.33% per annum – from April 2020 to the date of payment – and costs.

However, in written statements, the family stated they do not have enough assets to pay the claimants and will be applying for bankruptcy.

They’ve also said they are not admitting liability for the allegations against them despite consenting to the judgement.

The three were sued in August 2020 by judicial managers PricewaterhouseCoopers Advisory Services for breaching fiduciary duties as directors and fraud. In a court filing, the judicial managers were looking to recover USD 3.5 billion on top of another USD 90 million in dividends which the trio had allegedly paid themselves despite the company being insolvent.

HSBC is reportedly still pursuing its case against Seng, who is unrepresented. A two-day trial on 15 and 16 October is scheduled for HSBC's closing submissions against her to be heard.

Lim is scheduled to be sentenced on 15 October. He faces a jail term of up to 10 years and will also be liable to a fine for each charge of cheating and forgery.

An extensive coverage by Singapore bunkering publication Manifold Times regarding the fall of Hin Leong can be found below:

Photo credit: Manifold Times
Published: 2 October, 2024

Winding up

Singapore: Liquidator of Dong Nan Tankers issues notice of dividend

First interim dividend for the company is payable from 27 September and entitlements will be made either by way of telegraphic transfer or by cheque, according to Government Gazette notice.

Published

6 days ago

September 30, 2024

Admin

A notice of dividend for Dong Nan Tankers (Pte) Ltd, which is undergoing voluntary liquidation, was published on the Government Gazette on Friday (27 September).

The following are the details of the notice:

Name of Company : Dong Nan Tankers (Pte) Ltd (In Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation)
Unique Entity No. / Registration No. : 198400896H
Address of Registered Office : c/o Grant Thornton Singapore Private Limited, 8 Marina View, #40-04/05 Asia Square Tower 1, Singapore 018960
Amount per centum (US$) : 100.00 cents to a dollar of admitted unsecured claims
First and Final or otherwise : First Interim Dividend
When payable : 27 September 2024
Where payable : Entitlements will be made either by way of telegraphic transfer or by cheque, to be collected from the Company’s registered address as above.

Photo credit: Drew Beamer
Published: 30 September, 2024