Albedo: boxship hijacked - last sailors ransomed 2014

Sailors on a ship hijacked by Somali pirates nearly four years ago were finally released on June 7.   The exact circumstances of the release of the final Albedo crewmen is unclear. However, it is thought that the pirates may have been persuaded to accept a much lower ransom than originally expected.
The ship was among the cases receiving assistance from Colonel John Steed, a former British military attache to Kenya and United Nation's counter-piracy expert, who now runs the Secretariat for Regional Maritime Security, an organisation which specialises in dealing with Somalia's "forgotten" piracy cases.
last summer, the vessel sank in a storm, resulting in five of the crew drowning along with five of the pirates as they abandoned ship.
The 11 seamen released were then transferred to a ramshackle house near the Somali port of Hobyo, a notorious pirate haven, where they have been held ever since. They were expected to be flown to the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.
Guushaye, the pirate leader, and his gang initially demanded a ransom of $8-10M, but this was reduced to $2.85M for the ship and its crew. The shipowner appointed Ahmed Chinoy, chairman of Pakistan's Citizens Police Liaison Committee, to mediate between the pirates and the seafarers' families. After a campaign in Pakistan, Chinoy raised $1.1M, resulting in the release of Captain Jawaid Saleem and six other Pakistani crew members on 1 August 2012.   The pirate commanders "effectively ran off with the ransom money", sparking a dispute with the gang's investors, Hassan Hamarrow and Ahmed Sayruuq. 





[11 November 2010]
MV ALBEDO was hijacked by pirates approximately 900 nautical miles East of Mogadishu (Somalia) November 26.

The MV ALBEDO is Malaysian flagged and owned, The vessel was carrying containers and was bound for Mombasa from Jebel Ali in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). MALAYSIAN-based shipping line Majestic Enrich has started its first service of a Malaysia-Singapore feeder connecting Penang, Port Kelang (Northport and Westport) and Singapore.
The service will deploy one of its two 1,066-TEU renamed Albedo from Cape Ann, with CAPE Arago as yet unassigned.
The Majestic Enrich Company was incorporated on January 25, 2008 as a private limited company under the name of Majestic Enrich Sdn Bhd in Malaysia by Iranian shipping executives and on April 3 changed its name to Majestic Enrich Shipping Sdn Bhd.
The carrier will provide services between Malaysia, Singapore and India.


MV ALBEDO
IMO 9041162 Flag Malaysia Fully Cellular
DWT 15,562 on 8.98m
Built 93 MTW, GERMANY
Class GL - SS 03-2013 DD 11-2010
L.O.A. 157.69m - Beam 22.80m - L.B.P. 147.20m - Depth 11.80m
4 Holds - 7 Hatches, G.T. 10,859 - N.T. 6,200
MaK 6M601C 8,972 BHP 425 RPM Abt 17.5K On 38 (180Cst) + 2.5Mt Mgo If
Shaftgen Disconnected
TEU Capacity: 1,066, Homog: 755 @ 14T, Reefer Plugs: 100.
GEARLESS (GEARLESS) - CELLULAR
L.D.T. 5,130

MT Kerala: tale of George Procopiou's recovered product carrier

Pirates disabled the vessel’s AIS and other communication equipment so that the vessel could not be tracked from shore or satellite, painted over the identifying features of the vessel, including funnel, name and IMO number and undertook three separate ship-to-ship transfers of cargo amounting to the theft of approximately 12,271.5mt of cargo.

The owners of the Liberian-flag KERALA regained contact with the vessel on January 26, 2014, shortly after the pirates had disembarked. The vessel then immediately set a course for the safety of the port of Tema, Ghana, as a port of refuge.

A gang of Nigerian pirates reportedly stole a tugboat and sailed south into Angolan waters on January 18, 2014 where they attacked the oil products tanker carrying 60,000 metric tons of diesel, a few miles off the coast of Luanda, the capital of Angola.The Gulf of Guinea, a major commodities route, which covers an immense area extending from the Guinean coast to offshore Angola, has now become a piracy hotspot, where pirates attack oil tankers and other cargo vessels. They seize large oil tankers and load oil onto other ships to sell on the lucrative black market.

[March 3 2013]

Panama-flagged MV Royal Grace, a chemical tanker which was captured on March 2, 2012, and the Greek-owned oil tanker Smyrni, seized on May 11, 2012, are heading to Salalah, Oman.  

Mumbai: Due to coordinated actions of Ministry of Shipping, External Affairs, Defence, Home Affairs, Director General Shipping and other important agencies, on March 8 we could get release of two vessels MV Royal Grace hijacked in March 2012 and MT Smrini hijacked in May 2012. Twenty eight Indian sailors held hostage by Somali pirates have been released. The sailors were on board two ships Merchant Tanker Royal Grace and Merchant Tanker Smyrni and 17 were on board the MT Royal Grace and 11 were on board the MT Smyrni.

The Indian sailors have been released but they are yet to reach a safe zone. Both the ships were hijacked off the coast of Somalia in 2012.

Shipping Minister GK Vasan made the announcement in Chennai, saying the government secured the release of the sailors on board the two vessels due to coordinated efforts of the Ministries of Shipping, External Affairs, Defence, Home Affairs, Director General Shipping and other agencies. "I am very happy to announce the release of Indian seafarers. Due to coordinated actions of Ministry of Shipping, External Affairs, Defence, Home Affairs, Director General Shipping and other important agencies, on Friday we could get release of two vessels MV Royal Grace hijacked in March 2012 and MT Smrini hijacked in May 2012," Vasan told reporters in Chennai.

                After failing to receive help from the Government of India, the families of 17 Indian crew members of the MV Royal Grace sought help of a Pakistani-based activist Ansar Burney.   Burney, who runs the Ansar Burney Trust, was earlier successful in freeing the crew of MV Suez in June 2011, during another hijacking by Somali pirates

[June 5, 2012]

The tanker is near Bargaal. Pirates on board the Smyrni claim they are planning to move south to Garacad area and then onto Harardhere and Hobyo in Galmadug. Or they will move north to the northern tip of Puntland in Qandala or Caluula or south into Galmadug outside the operational area of Puntland. 

The market value of the crude oil loaded in Turkey and destined for refining in eastern Borneo is around $115 million.

George Procopiou 

The Liberian-flagged Tanker, the M/T SMYRNI,Imo 9493779 is carrying a cargo of 135000 MT of crude oil managed by Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd. (with a further 40 vessels in the fleet)  was attacked by 2 pirate skiffs approximately 285nm SSE of Masirah Island, Oman. and  hijacked while it was transiting the Arabian Sea.   No communications have been received from the ship since the ship was boarded.

The attack occurred at 0930 UTC, May 10.

Ship Type: Oil products tanker
Year Built: 2011
Length x Breadth: 275 m X 48 m
Gross Tonnage: 83562, DeadWeight: 149998 t
Speed recorded (Max / Average): 9 / 9 knots
Flag: Liberia [LR] 
Call Sign: A8YB6
IMO: 9493779, MMSI: 636015015 

Owner:	Pisces Finance Ltd.
Class Society:	American Bureau of Shipping		Operator:	Pisces Finance Ltd. / Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd.

Pisces Finance II Limited was incorporated in 2002 and is based in Cricket Square, Cayman Islands.

Mr. George Procopiou Founded Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd. and serves as its Chairman of the Board. Mr. Procopiou serves as Director of The North of England Protecting and Indemnity Association Limited.Dynacom Tankers Management, Ltd., a shipping company, operates cargo vessels for the oil industry. It operates a fleet of double hulls, very large crude carriers (VLCC), tankers, and LNG carriers. The company was founded in 1991 and is based in Athens, Greece with additional offices in Bombay and New Delhi, India; Singapore, Singapore; Fujaira, the United Arab Emirates; and a representation in Beijing, China.

94 Vas Georgiou B/2 Nikis Street
Glyfada
Athens,  166 75
Greece
Founded in 1991
George J. Procopiou’s business card states that his title is Civil Engineer. That fits very well with the personal style of Dynacom, a family-operated company in Glyfada, just outside Athens in Greece.

But the impression of a family-owned and -operated shipowner confirms the commitment to shipping and to running a professional company. It is hands-on for Mr Procopiou, whose company will take delivery of no fewer than 21 newbuildings next year. “Running Dynacom is both our business and hobby,” says Procopiou, underlining that it is teamwork that creates success and not a one-man show. Transforming Dynacom from a company operating basically second-hand tonnage into the present-day operator of a young fleet with an ambitious newbuilding programme is quite an achievement, and we are pleased to have an opportunity to learn more about the company from the very engaged George Procopiou, Civil Engineer, who occupies the corner office.“Since 2000, we’ve ordered no fewer than 85 newbuildings, and next year (2009) we will take delivery of another 21 vessels. We have good in-house expertise on newbuildings and on what we should look for when it comes to additions and changes to the yard designs. Normally, when we go through the specifications we end up with some USD 4–6 million in additions. This means that we take delivery of vessels made to our specifications, and the important thing here is that these vessels are as attractive to us as they are to potential users” says Procopiou.

One of the main reasons for Dynacom’s success is the company’s in-depth knowledge of shipping acquired over a long-term period. The company has first-rate operational and technical knowledge of the vessels. “The enthusiasm for what we do in terms of shipping experience and know-how makes our people stay on – we are all very proud of our achievements as we all identify ourselves very strongly with our company. 
The fleet today comprises some 50 vessels – mostly tankers and some LNG carriers,” he says.

Environment
Fuel prices are on the way up, as has been the case for a while. Engine manufacturers must maintain a focus on achieving the best possible fuel consumption and least possible emissions. Slowing down 
vessels to reduce the per mile fuel consumption and consequently emissions is 
of course a quick fix for air pollution issue. It is the engine makers task to design and build engines with lower 
emission levels. 
A longer term solution might be in switching from fuel oil to LNG. 
On the suggestion that larger vessels could be more environment friendly, this is a complex issue as many factors have 
to be in line to enable the use of larger 
vessels, such as port sizes water depth, shore installations. All such topics should be addresses simultaneously and under the spectrum of the global effects on 
pollution and not the regional ones.


LNG 
The move into the highly specialised LNG business, which used to be a rather closed business segment with particularly high standards, confirms Dynagas’s commitment to shipping and energy transportation and it achieved due to the company’s high standards and knowledge. “The age of our LNG vessels is less then two years The LNG market is soft for the time being, but I strongly believe that this will change over time. Two main reasons for this are that using coal for power production is not all that environmentally acceptable in many countries and, with the soaring prices for oil products, power production based on oil will have to be reduced. In many countries, nuclear power is either banned or has a bad public image. That leaves natural gas, as it is much more environmentally friendly with lower levels of CO2 emissions and almost no SOx and NOx emissions. Some projects have been delayed as the LNG production facilities either have not been finished in time or are experiencing technical problems. But the orders for ships are there and right now there are too many vessels waiting 

Energy Centurion:release, hijackers take some oil

Energy Centurion hijacked by pirates in Gulf of Guinea was released August 30, some 60 miles east of Lagos, Nigeria, and was steaming toward a "safe port."
The tanker held 57,000 tons of gas oil on board and about 3,000 tons was stolen by the pirates.
Isle of Man-registered hijacked tanker was shadowed by French, Nigerian Navy and US air carrier [LHD? LSD?]was said ready to assist.    


Vessel's name: Energy Centurion
Ex-name(s): Not Applicable IMO number: 9387970
Flag: Isle of Man Call sign:
Port of Registry: Douglas Summer DWT: 0 MT
Type of vessel: Built: Aug 22, 2008
Type of hull: Owner:
Class Society: Det Norske Veritas Operator: Enterprises Shipping & Trading S.A

XIANG HUA MEN hijacked off Iran 'rescued'

The 28-strong crew of a Chinese cargo ship seized by pirates in the Gulf of Oman off Iran's coast have been rescued, China's state media say, citing the nation's embassy in Tehran: 

Soon after the hijacked ship was approached by two Iranian navy ships and pirates were asked to surrender, the 9 pirates aboard threw their weapons over board.

.April 6, Beijing, China Maritime Search and Rescue Center received a report, Panama flag bulk carriers XIANG HUA  MEN was hijacked in the Gulf of Oman, by pirates  unknown number. The site of the incident in the naval convoy outside the region of about 1,000 nautical miles


China's maritime search and rescue center immediately launched the emergency plan to combat piracy and armed robbery against ships cooperation agreement information sharing center, the International Maritime Organization, the Asian region, the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center, Iran's maritime search and rescue agencies informed. The relevant domestic departments and embassies in relevant countries are multi-channel to carry out rescue work. 　　It is understood that, "XIANG HUA MEN round total tonnage of 15,709, the captain 181.5 meters, 23.05 meters wide ship this voyage half load (load of steel, equipment), sailing from Shanghai to Iran BIK Hong Kong. 　　Iranian naval vessels in the 0.5 nautical miles long and XIANG HUA MEN "ship to get in touch to confirm that the vessel had been hijacked by pirates. 　　Ministry of Transport once again reminded the shipping enterprises and their ship, the crew risk awareness, and to further strengthen the self-anti-self-help measures. [google translation, some correction]
A Chinese cargo ship has been hijacked by pirates in the Gulf of Oman. Xinhua news agency said the vessel was attacked this morning near the Iranian port of Chabahar. The Chinese embassy in Iran has initiated an "emergency" operation aimed at rescuing the ship and crew. It offered no other details including the nationality of the hijackers. According to China Radio International, the vessel, the Xiang-huamen, was sailing with a crew of 28.



XIANG HUA MEN BV Panama 15709/7459 20358 9.84 181.50*23.05*13.40 TWEENDECKER GERMANY 1987
Ship Type: Cargo
Year Built: 1987
Length x Breadth: 181 m X 23 m
Gross Tonnage: 13688, DeadWeight: 18160 t
Speed recorded (Max / Average): 12 / 11.3 knots
Flag: Panama [PA] 
Call Sign: 3FUI8
IMO: 8707331, MMSI: 354563000
 Thor Navigator (Until 2011 May 18)
- Century Fortuna (Until 2003 Mar 31)
- Elpis (Until 2000 Jun 11)
- Thraki Hellas (Until 1999 Jun 03)
- King Lion (Until 1995 Apr 01)
- Hanuman (Until 1994 Dec 01)
- Boka (Until 1992 Dec 30)


XIANG HUA - (IMO 9109873)
XIANG HUAN - (IMO 8415005)
XIANG HONG - (IMO 8715833)


Nanjing Ocean Shipping Co.,Ltd.


    Nanjing Ocean Shipping Co., Ltd. (NASCO) was established on Sep 28, 1988 and restructured in 1994. Since its inception，she has developed gradually to become a comprehensive ocean shipping company with a full range of services in ocean shipping, such as ship owning, operating, ship management, international shipping agency, manning services, ,ocean ship engineering as well as ship supply and the shipping investment consultancy. Its liner and tramping vessels cover the trading areas in Asia, Europe, America and Africa.

Montecristo: Royal marines to the rescue

They boarded the 56,000-ton bulk carrier Montecristo and disarmed the pirates without encountering any opposition. USS De Wert was the first NATO warship to reach MV Montecristo and assessed the situation while the NATO boarding team was getting ready to intervene. British Marines, armed with pistols and SA-80 automatic rifles and operating from a Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship, the RFA Fort Victoria, sped towards the hijacked ship in inflatable boats as a British helicopter buzzed overhead.

“It was a compliant boarding — the 11 pirates surrendered without firing a shot,” said a Ministry of Defence spokesman. “They were arrested and detained on board the ship.” The ship’s 23 crew – seven Italians, six Ukrainians and 10 Indians — were released unharmed.

Four of the Italians were privately-contracted security guards, but in line with international practise they were unarmed and had been powerless to fend off the pirates.

MONTECRISTO:Antonio D’Alesio bulker hijacked

Somali pirates on Monday hijacked an Antonio D’Alesio bulker, who with his brother Nello has been at the helm of the D’Alesio Group for over forty years.
9325025 MONTECRISTO 9HA2348 Bulker 180263 2005
Bulk carrier with transom stern, strengthened double bottom. Five cargo holds. Five pairs of water ballast tanks.
Builder Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co., Ltd – South Corea
Delivery June 2011
Pirates hijacked the Italian-flagged Montecristo, some 620 nautical miles (1,148 kilometers) from the Somali coast.

. "The Vessel was hijacked on Oct. 10 in Gulf of Aden or further to the east at about 0700, no communications after that. Crew are 23, 7 Italians, 10 Ukrainians, 6 Indians," Dalmare said in a statement posted on the firm's website.

Montecristo was on heading to Vietnam which it came under attack approximately 450 nautical miles Northwest of Socotra, Yemen.

ROSALIA D’AMATO: Giuseppe D'Amato's bulker

ROSALIA D’AMATO Bulk Carrier , 74,500 dwt, Italian flagged to Bandar Imam Khomeini (Iran) from Paranagua (Brazil) hijacked approximately 350NM South East of Salalah, Oman, in the Indian Ocean on 21 April.

It was attacked by a single skiff. Coalition warships had communications with the vessel and were told: ‘pirates onboard stay away’.


Officials with Perseveranza, the company that owns the ship, say they have been in contact with the ship's captain and report that all crew members are well.

Attacked and seized by pirates last night, right in the Arabian Sea, the Italian ship "Rosalia D'Amato." The bulk carrier is part owner Angelo D'Amato, owner of "Perseverance Navigation" and nephew of the owner of "Brothers D'Amato." . A crew of 22 aboard, including 6 Italians.Two are in Sicily, including the commander Orazio Lanza, three bells, two of Ischia, one of Vico Equense, and the first officer of Meta di Sorrento native who lives in Belgium.. The facts, as you can rebuild, occurred around 4 am, Italian time, when the boat - playing live in Brazil and Iran - was in the Arabian Sea about 400 miles off the coast of Oman. Two small boats approached on board with the pirates who have seized the Italian ship. . Everything would be done without firing with no consequences for the crew. [rough translation from Google]

In a prudent commercial management, all the owned vessels are
time chartered for long periods to important Italian and International Groups.

The Bulk carriers are chartered to Cosco , Armada Group , Cargill , North China Shipping, and others primary operators.



Giuseppe D'Amato | The President

· Perseveranza SpA is a Company owned by Giuseppe D'Amato.

Giuseppe D'Amato is the leader of a family of Shipowners that since four
generations is present in the world shipping community .

Giuseppe D'Amato is unanimously recognized as one of the most prestigious
entrepreneurs in the Italian Shipowners community.

He has been Vice President of Confitarma, the Italian Shipowners
Association, for six years; he has been Board Member of the Banca di Credito
Popolare di Torre del Greco, the biggest independent regional bank in
Southern Italy; he has been Board Member of UMS Generali Marine SpA, the
biggest Italian Insurance Company specialised in Maritime Hull and Machinery
Risks, that today is a branch of Assicurazioni Generali for transportation; he has just been awarded an honorary degree in Shipping Business at the
"Università Parthenope" in Naples.

Hanjin Tianjin: YoungMin's boxship hijacked

Hanjin Tianjin,Hanjin Shipping Co., for Singapore, 6,500 TEU hijacked 250 miles (402 kilometers) east of the Yemeni island of Socotra around 5:15 a.m. today Korea time.
Hanjin Shipping (President & CEO Young Min Kim) is Korea's largest carrier that operates some 60 liner and tramper services around the globe transporting over 100 million tons of cargo annually.

Its fleet consists of some 200 containerships, bulk and LNG carriers. The company is worth KRW 6 trillion and earning KRW 9 trillion annually.

Samho jewelry: one or two people lost acceptable

Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said, “If one or two people were lost during the operation, the people would accept this, but more would lead to criticism that the operation was reckless, and the military took this into consideration.”when the Cheonghae Unit began its rescue operation on Jan. 21, the pirates looked the Korean crew, who had taken refuge under blankets on the bridge, in the face and took several aimed shots at ship captain Seok Hae-gyun,
Seok is suffering blood poisoning from gunshot wounds in the abdomen and fractured legs, in addition to a blood clotting disorder due to a low platelet count. "He's weakening rapidly," the official added.

Seok received an emergency operation to treat the infection at the hospital in the presence of a Korean medical team of three led by Prof. Lee Kook-jong of Ajou University Hospital, who is an expert on gunshot wounds.

In a press conference right after the surgery, Lee said, "Seok has very serious wounds. The latest operation was only part of efforts to slow down the pace of deterioration, but many operations will be needed."

He said Seok's abdominal organs are badly damaged. "It's hard to tell how many bullets are still in his body, because many bullet fragments are scattered in the arms as well."

The plan to transfer him to Korea will therefore likely be delayed.

Polar: Tsakiris tanker hijacked off Socotra

MV POLAR was attacked during the the morning of 30 October 2010, approximately 580 nautical miles (almost 1,100 km) East from Socotra island in the Somali Basin. The owner confirmed this morning
Paradise Navigation S.A. is a Panamanian registered company, established in Greece under law 89

Constantinos Tsakiris is the Chairmman and Managing Director of Paradise Navigation SA, a shipping management company established in Greece and founded back in 1968, as Navipower Compania Naviera SA, by the Tsakiris family, a traditional Greek ship-owning and operating family.

Ship Name: POLAR
IMO: 9299563
MMSI: 371078000
Callsign: 3EBD9
Flag: Panama

Category: Tanker
Beam: 32
Length: 229
Draught: 11


Paradise Navigation SA, Managers of the “MT Polar”, regret to confirm that at 01:40 UTC on 30 October, about 600 NM east of Socotra island, off Somalia, their vessel came under attack by 2 skiffs and that armed pirates boarded their vessel. There is no further information for the moment. Twenty four crew members are on board, comprising 3 Greek nationals, 3 Montenegrin, 1 Serbian, 1 Romanian and 16 Filipinos.

At the time of the attack the Panama flag oil products tanker “Polar” with dwt 72,825, was en route from St. Petersburg and Kronshtadt to Singapore with a cargo of fuel oil. All the appropriate authorities have been contacted immediately and made aware of the situation, including the Flag State, the counter piracy coordination force EU NAVFOR and the crew manning agencies of the seafarers involved.

The whole focus of Paradise Navigation is to ensure the safety, well being and early release of the seafarers on board the tanker, while keeping their families -and the crew manning agents- fully advised of the situation and any developments, understanding fully the great concern they must have at this time for their loved ones.

Paradise Navigation receives the support of all the necessary advisors in dealing with this hijack and will not be providing any operational details that might endanger the lives of its crew, nor encourage further criminal attacks of this kind. The company asks that commentators on this event accept and understand this position.

York: Another BSM LPG tanker hijacked

The vessel was attacked on 23 October by two skiffs, approximately 50 nautical miles East from Mombasa. The Turkish warship GAZIANTEP, operating under the Combined Maritime Forces (Task Force 151) launched her helicopter to investigate. The helicopter was able to observe pirates with weapons on board the vessel.

The German-owned Bernhard Schulte Management LPG tanker LONGCHAMP was released after the ransom had been delivered by air. Local marine observers reported that the ransom was delivered by an aircraft at around 14h00 2009-03-27, $6 million had been the demand. then read see earlier


9220421 YORK 9VED8 LPG Tanker 5076 2000 Singapore

Samho Dream: back at Hobyo

Since the 4th of October the Samho Dream is again held off Hobyo at the central Somali Indian Ocean coast. back earlier more also see read

Suez: Xassan Talareer clan hijacking

Suez hijacked, dropped anchor at Bargaal, home of the Xassan Talareer clan, at the north eastern tip of the Horn of Africa, General Cargo Ship, 17300, 1984, Panama IMO: 8218720 ex-Evi

Company already paid a US$1.5 million ransom for another hostage ship, the MV MANSOURAH 1 (aka Al Mansourah), which was hijacked on 03 September 2008 and released against the ransom after only 23 days.

Motivator: Kriton Lendoudis chemtanker hijacked

The Marshall Islands Flagged Evalend chemical products tanker, lubricant cargo,
MOTIVATOR IMO: 9340386
2009 july 30, Maasvlakte, inbound Rotterdam
Call Sign : V7LQ5
Gross tonnage : 8539
Year of build : 2007

Lendoudis once sold his yacht to Slobodan Milosevic and a Facebook page uses his name and this picture

Golden Blessing: Dingheng Liantou chemtanker

GOLDEN BLESSING 9539016 9V7768 PETROLEUM/CHEMICAL TANKER 9,127 gt

In the early hours of 28 June, pirates took control of the MV Golden Blessing approximately 90 nautical miles off the northern Somali coast. On notification from the Master of the MV Golden Blessing that pirates were on board, the EU NAVFOR German warship Schleswig-Holstein immediately launched their helicopter and reported sighting suspected pirates on board the MV Golden Blessing.

The MV Golden Blessing, a Singapore flagged tanker with deadweight of 14445 tonnes, was carrying a cargo of glycoethelene. The MV Golden Blessing has a crew of 19 Chinese; there are no reports of injuries. The vessel is under pirate control and is now moving towards the Somali Coast. EU NAVFOR is monitoring.

housing glycol ethylene on board. It remains unclear if glycol ethylene was the object of desire for the Somali pirates. The poison is used in antifreezing processes.

Mr.Li Duozhu, main founder of Dingheng Group, graduated from Shanghai Maritime College (now named as Shanghai Maritime University), majoring in Marine Management, Bachelor Degree. It is his belief that the traditional Chinese culture, joined with the western institutionalized management, could form a strong competitiveness and lead the Chinese enterprises to be big roles in the global market. A new stage of industrial revolution may come in thirty years, when China is to be the world's economic power and it will be a time for the Chinese pattern in business management to replace the Western pattern.Golden Pacific International Holdings owns the Golden Blessing; it was being chartered by Shanghai Dingheng Shipping Co. Ltd. [Shanghai Dingheng Liantou Investment Co., Ltd.]

Eleni P: Pittas bulker hijacked

The Liberian-flagged MV Eleni P was headed to India when pirates seized it 250 nautical miles off the coast of Oman Wednesday morning May 12.
1339 9128025 ELENI P A8SI2 Bulker 72119 1997 Liberia

Registered Owner 1 : ELENI SHIPPING LIMITED

Management Company 1 : EUROBULK LTD.
Euroseas' operations are managed by Eurobulk Ltd., an ISO 9001:2000 certified affiliated ship management company


Ship owning interests of the Pittas family of Athens, Greece, which has been in the shipping business over the past 135 years.



Aristides Pittas, Chairman and CEO of Euroseas- in foto with professor Harilaos Psaraftis- commented: We are happy to pay a dividend of $0.29 per share which is $0.05 per share or 21% above our target minimum dividend of $0.24.

Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ: ESEA), an owner and operator of drybulk and container carrier vessels and a provider of seaborne transportation for drybulk and containerized cargoes, announced today that it has declared a dividend of $0.29 per common share for the third quarter of 2007. The dividend is payable on November 28, 2007 to all shareholders of record as of November 5, 2007. This dividend marks an increase of 16% from the prior quarter's dividend of $0.25 per share.

Aristides Pittas, Chairman and CEO of Euroseas commented: We are happy to pay a dividend of $0.29 per share which is $0.05 per share or 21% above our target minimum dividend of $0.24. This dividend continues our policy of paying significant dividends out of earnings and reflects the further strengthening of the dry markets, the prime driver of our growth. Our focus remains to continue investing on accretive acquisitions to further enhance our returns.

About Euroseas Ltd.

Euroseas Ltd. was formed on May 5, 2005 under the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands to consolidate the ship owning interests of the Pittas family of Athens, Greece, which has been in the shipping business over the past 135 years. Euroseas trades on the NASDAQ Global Market under the ticker ESEA since January 31, 2007.

Euroseas operates in the dry cargo, drybulk and container shipping markets. Euroseas' operations are managed by Eurobulk Ltd., an ISO 9001:2000 certified affiliated ship management company, which is responsible for the day-to-day commercial and technical management and operations of the vessels. Euroseas employs its vessels on spot and period charters and through pool arrangements.

After the delivery to its fleet of the recently acquired panamax drybulk carrier, M/V Trust Jakarta (to be renamed M/V Ioanna P), the Company will have a fleet of 15 vessels, including 3 Panamax drybulk carriers, 2 Handysize drybulk carriers, 2 Intermediate container ship, 5 Handysize container ships, 2 Feeder container ships and a multipurpose dry cargo vessel.