Tanker hit near Basra carried gas condensate, says expert

Shafaq News- Basra

One of the two tankers recently targeted inside Iraqi territorial waters near the port of Basra was carrying gas condensates produced by Basra Gas Company, economic expert Nabil Al-Marsoumi revealed on Thursday.

In a statement, Al-Marsoumi added that the second tanker was empty at the time of the attack, noting that Basra Gas Company is owned 51% by Iraq, while the remaining 49% is held by oil major Shell and Japanese conglomerate Mitsubishi Corp.

The remarks followed an attack on the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker SAFESEA VISHNU and the Maltese-flagged ZEFYROS inside Iraqi waters near Basra. Firefighters on Thursday extinguished fires aboard the vessels, while rescue teams continued searching for missing crew members after the incident left one person dead and several others injured. Security sources told Shafaq News that preliminary investigations suggest the attack may have involved an explosive-laden boat.