RSS
Pirates from Somalia have captured a British-flagged container ship holding approximately 2300 Hyundai and Kia vehicles. The ship was taken on January 1, some 600 miles off the coast of Somalia.
Hyundai isn’t worried by the news. “As soon as the vessel embarks, all risks related to the vessel are the responsibility of the distributor,” Hyundai told Bloomberg. “All payments for the cars have been made, while the cars are also insured.” The cars were headed to Saudi Arabia from the South Korean port of Ulsan.
Since July, 20 ships have been patrolling the region, protecting more than 30,000 ships per year. The area of interest to pirates and thus allied forces is the Gulf of Aden, somewhat of a funnel into the Suez Canal. Nearly 10 percent of world trade travels those waters annually. Currently Somali pirates have control of 12 cargo ships in the region.
Somali pirates view their acts as retaliation for the poaching of fish within Somali waters. Reportedly $300 million in fish are poached annually from the region. Pirates are able to reclaim approximately $100 million annually in ransom money.
Though often glamorized, pirating is a huge issue affecting several aspects of international trade.
Source: Bloomberg
Well, at least those scurvy pirates have good taste in machinery…lol Did we learn nothing from the Maersk Alabama incident? Just blow their heads off when they try to board to teach these punks a lesson.