Indonesian Coast Guard News

China said on Wednesday it was seeking details about 25 of its nationals who were among 61 crew on two supertankers seized by Indonesia on suspicion of illegally transferring oil.Indonesia said on Sunday it had seized the vessels after they were detected making the transfer from Iranian-flagged MT Horse to Panamanian-flagged MT Freya, causing an oil spill.The Indonesian authorities said the seizure was not related to U.S. sanctions, which Washington imposed in a bid to shut off Iran’s oil exports in a dispute over Tehran’s nuclear program.The MT Horse, owned by the National Iranian Tanker Company, and MT Freya, managed by Shanghai Future Ship Management Co…

The Iranian and Panamanian-flagged vessels seized by Indonesian authorities for suspected illegal oil transfers are making their way to dock at Batam island in the country’s Riau Islands Province for further investigation, a Indonesia coast guard spokesman told Reuters.The two supertankers, with crew members from Iran and China, were seized on Sunday in Indonesian waters near Kalimantan island. The MT Horse, owned by the National Iranian Tanker Company and MT Freya, managed by Shanghai Future Ship Management Co, had a total of 61 crew members onboard.“The ships will arrive in Batam at around 3pm (0600GMT) to 4pm later today,” Wisnu Pramandita…

An Indonesia-flagged car carrier operated by the NYK Group company PT. NYK-SPIL INDORORO, rescued eight fishermen in distress at the Strait of Malacca last week.The 100-meter roll-on, roll-off (RoRo) ship Kalimantan Leader was sailing from Belawan, Indonesia, to Jakarta, on September 23 when its crew spotted eight fishermen in the water after their vessel sank.The merchant vessel rescued the distressed fishermen immediately, and the eight men were transferred in to an Indonesian Coast Guard vessel on September 24 off Batam Island, Indonesia. All are said to be in good health.(Photo: NYK Group)

An undersea cable and pipe-laying ship, the Vanuatu-flagged MV Star Centurion, capsized in the Indonesian waters of the Singapore Straits after a collision with a tanker on Sunday, with no fatalities, authorities said on Monday.The Singapore Straits are one of the world's busiest shipping zones with hundreds of container ships, oil and fuel tankers and dry bulk carriers daily traversing the waters that connect east Asia to Europe, India and Africa.The collision happened just north of Bintan, an Indonesian island in the Riau Islands province that sits opposite the city-state of Singapore."It's already capsized," Samsul Nizar, the head of operations at the Indonesian coast guard base at Tanjung Uban on Bintan…

Officers and crewmembers of the Crowley Maritime Corp.-managed cargo ship M/V Ocean Glory were recently honored with a 2016 Admiral of the Ocean Sea (AOTOS) Mariners’ Plaque for demonstrating heroism at sea during the United Seamen’s Service’s (USS) annual AOTOS awards ceremony in New York. The mariners were recognized for their August 2016 rescue of an Indonesian fisherman in the vicinity of the Bali Strait while en route to Banyuwangi, Indonesia. Accepting the award on behalf of the ship's officers and crew was Capt. Christopher Hill, master on the M/V Ocean Glory.

President of Indonesia Joko Widodo, commonly known as Jokowi,  has vowed to transform Indonesia, which includes 17,000 islands into a ‘maritime power’, and also includes plans to improve port infrastructure, as well as plans to fund a massive infrastructure programme, according to Bloomberg. Indonesia announced on Wednesday evening that it will seek to change the name of the South China Sea to the Natuna Sea in the area within 200 miles of its Natuna Islands, reports SCMP. Ahmad Santosa, the Chief of Task Force 115, an agency combating illegal fishing, said the proposal will “be given to the United Nations”, adding that “if no one objects ... then it will be officially the Natuna Sea”.

Indonesian authorities sank 23 foreign fishing boats on Tuesday (Apr 5), saying they were "operating illegally in the archipelago's vast waters in continuation efforts for anti-poaching", China's Xinhua news agency reported. Indonesian coast guard authorities blew up 23 foreign vessels this week after charging them with fishing illegally in the country’s waters, bringing the number of vessels destroyed by the Government under the policy to more than 170. Maritime and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti said her agency sank 10 Malaysian and 13 Vietnamese boats that were caught fishing illegally in Indonesian waters. “The sinking of the boats is to enforce the law and to protect the sovereignty of our territory to ensure that the sea is the future of our nation…

1983-built chemical tanker Nusantara Akbar  (built 1983) went down off Dumai in Indonesian waters of the Malacca Strait on Saturday after taking on water. The 107-meter-long vessel, which reportedly suffered a leak in its engine room, started taking on water and subsequently sank.The vessel was carrying 7,000 tons of diesel at the time. The body of the helmsman, 26, was found in a tank, while 26 other crew were evacuated from the Taruna Cipta Kencana ship. Local reports suggest the engine room started taking on water and despite the best efforts of the crew to plug the leak, the master decided to evacuate within a couple of hours of the leak being found. Indonesian search and rescue teams were alerted and were quickly on the scene.

Representatives from 17 countries would take part in the sixth Maritime Security Desktop Exercise that is scheduled to be held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia from March 30 to April 1. The drill, dubbed "the 6th Maritime Security Desktop Exercise or MSDE" aims at strengthening coordination among the participating countries in combating crimes at sea at the region, said Edi Fernandi, head of Indonesian maritime security board. The exercise is being organized by the Indonesian Coast Guard (Bakamla) in cooperation with the Australian Border Protection Service, he said. "Many countries have put the prevention on the violation at sea as priority after experiencing many of such violations which has occurred at the global sea territory," he added.

Two Singapore-registered vessels have been detained in Indonesia the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said. The sole Singaporean who was caught along with those ships is a marine surveyor and he returned to Singapore on March 16. MPA also said it was assisting Indonesia in the investigations of the two separate incidents. Recent media reports had quoted that four Singapore-registered vessels and four Singaporeans were detained. Indonesia said it had detained a total of four Singapore-registered ships in two incidents in early March, each of which involved boats that allegedly did not have proper papers. MPA clarified that only two vessels are Singapore-registered and only one person detained is a Singaporean marine surveyor.