S. Korean Tanker Won’t Dock in Basra
A supertanker owned by a South Korean company has refused to load at Iraq’s Basra oil terminal because of security concerns, shipping brokers said Wednesday. It was the second Asian-owned tanker that refused to load there this week.
SK Corp.’s C Champion refused to load and was replaced by another tanker belonging to Western-based Tankers International, brokers said.
Earlier this week, a Hong Kong-registered supertanker refused to dock at the terminal, citing safety concerns, brokers said.
“We’re hearing that the C Champion refused to go there because of security and threats against shipping circulating on this site,” a broker said, referring to an Iraqi-based website that allegedly carried a warning from militants threatening to attack merchant ships that transport supplies for U.S. forces.
The website has denied that it carried such a warning.
Over the weekend, South Korea warned the country’s shipping firms of possible attacks. Japanese sailors, under instruction from their union, are already refusing to call at Basra because of security concerns.
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