Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency News

A Chinese government survey ship is tagging an exploration vessel operated by Malaysia's state oil company Petronas in disputed waters in the South China Sea, three regional security sources said on Friday.China's Haiyang Dizhi 8 entered waters near Malaysia on Thursday, according to ship tracking website Marine Traffic.On Friday, it was close to the Petronas-operated West Capella, according to the security sources, who did not want to be identified because they were not authorised to talk to the media. One of the sources said a Vietnamese vessel was also tagging the West Capella.The area is close to waters claimed by both Vietnam and Malaysia as well by China…

A U.S. Coast Guard International Port Security team completed a bilateral engagement with Malaysian officials in April. This engagement involved sharing best practices and visiting with the Ministry of Infrastructure Marine and Ports Division to observe the implementation of the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code at three port facilities: Northport, Port Klang and two port facilities in Penang; Swettenham Cruise Terminal and North Butterworth Container Terminal.

A runaway container vessel which was involved in a hit and run accident with two other vessels was seized by the Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) DM 7 Tanjung Sedili District in the waters of Tanjung Ramunia. The accident, which took place in the evening Feb 18 in Singapore Strait off Batu Ayam, Malaysia. Tankers TINA 7 and STRAITS 3 were anchored some 2.7 nm off the coast, when passing MV OLF hit them both, inflicting damages. The 40,000 dwt  MV OLF didn’t stop or contacted damaged ships, and sailed away. Vessel is en route from Hong Kong to India with 16 crew, comprising of Indian and Sri Lanka nationalities. The Olf was under way from Hong Kong to India at the time of the allision…

The surge of piracy in South-East Asia waters continues as ships passing the Straits of Malacca and Singapore are falling victim to acts of piracy, says Clyde & Co. Whilst Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia operate anti-piracy patrols in the area, it has limited resources. The sheltered coast and islands also makes it easier for robbers to operate. As piracy rampages on, Indonesia and Malaysia has taken efforts to jointly increase security. By far, the most significant incident suggests activities going beyond the usual act of armed robbery or theft on board ship. On 11 June 2015, eight men armed with pistols and machetes boarded the Orkim Harmony a Malaysian registered tanker whilst it was nearing the end of her voyage.

The hijacked oil tanker Orkim Harmony has been released by pirates, who fled in the ship's rescue boat, Malaysian navy and maritime officials said on Friday. The Orkim Harmony, hijacked on June 11 off the Malaysian coast by pirates reportedly armed with pistols and machetes, was now being escorted by the navy to Malaysia's Kuantan Port. Officials said only one member of the 22 crew was injured, suffering a gunshot wound to the thigh. Three Malaysian navy ships and two aircraft were hunting the fleeing pirates. The hijacking is the second seizure of a tanker by pirates in Southeast Asia this month, raising further concerns over piracy in the region.

Orkim Harmony located with crew, cargo safe; Malaysian navy negotiating with pirates onboard. A Malaysian naval vessel has made contact with the pirates onboard hijacked tanker Orkim Harmony and is trying to persuade them to surrender, a maritime official said on Thursday. The tanker as of noon (0400 GMT) was in Vietnamese waters headed south with the Malaysian navy vessel KD Terengganu and a maritime ship in pursuit. Both the crew and the cargo onboard the tanker are safe, and the navy is negotiating with the robbers through the captain of the Orkim Harmony, said Vice Admiral Ahmad Puzi, deputy director general of the operations unit of the Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA), in a press briefing.

The Malaysian-registered vessel MT Orkim Harmony carrying 6,000 metric tonnes of RON95 petrol went missing in the South China Sea near Johor on Thursday (June 11). The tanker was sailing from Malacca to Kuantan Port. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has expressed his concern over the fate of MT Orkim Harmony and said that his government will deploy its resources to locate the missing oil tanker off Johor. "I am distressed by the news of a missing Malaysian-owned tanker. I pray for the safety of the 22-strong crew, 16 of who are Malaysians. My thoughts are with their families. The government will deploy our resources to locate it," the Prime Minister said.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak pledged to advance defense and maritime cooperation. It is the first time that Japan has agreed to start negotiations for cooperation on the transfer of defense equipment and technology with a member of the 10-nation ASEAN according to Japanese officials. Abe and Najib vowed to boost coordination in maritime security, with Abe backing Malaysia’s efforts in ensuring safety and security in the Strait of Malacca and the South China Sea, where Malaysia and some other Southeast Asian countries are locked in territorial disputes with China, according to the statement. "As a concrete step, we've agreed to cooperate in defense equipment.

In the dead of night, as his fuel tanker sailed through the narrowest section of one of the world's busiest waterways, Captain Thiwa Saman was wrenched from sleep and pitched into a waking nightmare. Three men with guns and swords were banging on his cabin door. Other pirates had already stormed the bridge, seized the duty officer and smashed up the radio and GPS equipment. Over the next 10 hours, mostly in daylight, the pirates held Thiwa and his 13 crew captive while siphoning off 4 million litres of diesel, worth around $2 million on the black market, to another tanker. They even re-painted the name of Thiwa's ship to confuse anyone searching for it. Then they vanished.

Several long-range surveillance ARGC-2400 cameras from Obzerv Technologies have been installed in Malaysia to improve the Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency's (MMEA) capacity for the maritime security in the straits and Malaysian territorial waters. From economic and strategic perspectives, the Strait of Malacca is one of the most important shipping lanes in the world. The Strait carries 70,000 vessels per year, close to one quarter of the world's sea trade. Moreover, it has grown to be the main passageway for oil for major world consumers such as Japan and China. As a consequence, this area has become a target for piracy attacks. In reaction, the Japanese government has offered the last three cameras to the MMEA to complete its surveillance system network.