AsiaOperationsPiracy

Malaysian ship missing for eight days not hijacked, located by authorities

A ship that many had suspected had become the latest victim of piracy in Malaysian waters turns out to have had severe engine troubles and local authorities are now tracking the vessel down after eight days drifting.

While mainstream press today are reporting a suspected hijacking, Splash can confirm that general cargo vessel Sah Lian has been located by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) around 22nm off Tanjun Baram, Sarawak.

MMEA director of operations Captain Hamid confirmed to Splash that the vessel suffered from a defective main engine. While the vessel left Kuching on September 2, Hamid said that the 24 year-old vessel was only reported missing on September 7.

The Sah Lian is a Malaysian registered general cargo vessel, with 14 crew onboard, and was carrying around 500 tons of cargo when it left Kuching, headed for Limbang in Sarawak.

MMEA has sent a vessel to give assistance to Sah Lian.

Grant Rowles

Grant spent nine years at Informa Group based in London, Sydney, Hong Kong and Singapore. He gained strong management experience in publishing, conferences and awards schemes in the shipping and legal areas, working on a number of titles including Lloyd's List. In 2009 Grant joined Seatrade responsible for the commercial development of Seatrade’s Asia products. In 2012, with Sam Chambers, he co-founded Asia Shipping Media.
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