MV SKIPPER is not registered with NIMASA – Mobereola

The Director General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dayo Mobereola, has stated that MV SKIPPER, a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC), is not a Nigerian-flagged vessel and, its purported owners, Thomarose Global Ventures Limited, are not registered with NIMASA as a shipping company.

Dr. Mobereola made this position known against the media reports that the United States Coast Guard, in collaboration with the U.S. Navy, intercepted MV SKIPPER with IMO Number 9304667, alleged to be Nigerian-owned and involved in crude oil theft and other transnational crimes.

The NIMASA boss said “we wish to put on record that the VLCC SKIPPER is not a Nigerian-flagged vessel, and its purported owners, Thomarose Global Ventures Limited, are not registered with NIMASA as a shipping company.

“An analysis of the vessel’s movement, monitored through the Agency’s Command, Control, Communication, Computers and Intelligence (C4i) Centre, shows that the vessel was last sighted in Nigerian waters on 1st July 2024.

“After departing Nigerian waters, the vessel continued on its international voyage pattern and was tracked operating in the Arabian Sea (Asia) and later in the Caribbean region, where the U.S. interdiction eventually took place.

“Records indicate that SKIPPER which was formerly owned by Triton Navigation Corp, has undergone multiple name changes over time.”

He, however, reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to collaborate with all relevant stakeholders, including U.S. authorities, in the ongoing investigations, emphasizing that criminality will not be tolerated in Nigerian waters.