An American oil tanker caught fire in Egypt due to a “drone attack”

An American oil tanker caught fire in Egypt due to a “drone attack”

🔸British maritime security company Ambrey said on Wednesday that, based on an initial assessment, a drone had hit a gas storage ship belonging to an American company at the port of Damietta in Egypt on the Mediterranean coast.

🔸In contrast, Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum, in a statement, confirmed the occurrence of a fire at this port, but made no mention of a drone attack.

🔸The port services company Inchcape also said in a separate message that two gas-carrying tankers at the port of Damietta caught fire.

🔸According to three commercial sources familiar with the incident, the drone hit the vessel “Energo Winter,” causing a fire that then spread to another ship.

🔸Two other security sources told Reuters that the initial assessment indicates that a drone attack was the most likely cause of the blast.

🔸So far, no group or individual has claimed responsibility for the incident.

🔸The vessel “Energo Winter” is a floating unit for storing and converting natural gas, with a storage capacity of 138,250 cubic meters. Its owner is an American company, and another American company is responsible for its technical, safety, and commercial management.

🔸In its statement, Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum said that a fire broke out on a gas supply vessel and a storage vessel at the port of Damietta and was immediately contained, in accordance with approved emergency response plans, by firefighting and security teams.

🔸The ministry added that Karim Bedawi, Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum, went to the site to oversee rescue and containment operations.

🔸According to the statement, the fire left no fatalities or injuries, and technical and rescue teams are still dealing with the incident and assessing its consequences.