Prokopiou’s six-week-old tanker struck in Strait of Hormuz

A six-week-old tanker managed by Dynacom Tankers Management has been damaged after being struck by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, with its engine room hit and the vessel subsequently left disabled and adrift. The Liberian-flagged Lipsi, an Aframax/LR2 tanker of about 115,000 deadweight tonnes, is managed by Dynacom, controlled by Greek shipowner George Prokopiou. The incident took place on October 4, according to maritime security reports, during the tanker’s passage through the strategically important waterway. The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre issued Warning 150-26 after receiving a report from the master of a tanker that it had been struck by an “unknown projectile”, causing damage to the engine room. UKMTO said the crew were safe and that no environmental impact had been reported, adding that authorities were investigating and advising vessels in the area to transit with caution. Importantly, the initial UKMTO warning did not identify the tanker by name or establish who was responsible for the strike. However, maritime security firm Vanguard Tech identified the vessel as Lipsi, while a separate NAVAREA IX navigational warning issued on October 4 named the tanker and said it had been involved in a security incident and was drifting in the Strait of Hormuz. The warning placed the vessel about 3.9 nautical miles northeast of Jazirat Um Al Fayarin, with mariners cautioned to keep clear and exercise heightened care. The episode is particularly notable because of the vessel’s age. Lipsi, IMO 1025033, was delivered to Dynacom on August 24, 2026, just six weeks before the attack, after being built by Shanhaiguan Shipbuilding in China. Industry reports suggest the voyage was among the vessel’s first since leaving the yard. The tanker is approximately 250 metres long and 44 metres wide, with capacity of around 115,000 dwt. The latest incident comes against a renewed deterioration in security conditions around the Strait, where commercial shipping has faced repeated attacks and severe disruption this year. Procopiou’s Dynacom has nevertheless remained unusually active in the Gulf despite the risks. In March, the company’s Shenlong became one of the first major tankers to clear Hormuz after shipping traffic through the passage had fallen by about 91 per cent. Days later, another Dynacom tanker, the Smyrni, also completed the crossing, while the company continued sending vessels through the Gulf in the following weeks despite the worsening security environment. In April, the Marathi and Pola were among Dynacom vessels to successfully cross the strait as mainstream commercial traffic slowed to a trickle. The risks to Procopiou’s fleet became more direct in July, when two Dynacom-managed tankers were struck near Hormuz. The 306,000-dwt Acheloos, a Liberian-flagged VLCC delivered earlier this year, was struck by a projectile while sailing off Oman. Dynacom said all crew members were safe and no pollution was reported. At around the same time, the Malta-flagged Kavomaleas, a 75,000-dwt product tanker, was hit by two projectiles, sparking a fire in its engine room and forcing the crew to evacuate. The latest strike on Lipsi therefore marks the third Dynacom-managed tanker reported hit in the wider Hormuz area in less than three months. It also comes after Procopiou emerged earlier this year as one of the few major shipowners continuing to send tankers through the waterway despite sharply reduced commercial traffic and heightened security risks. Neither the type of projectile used against Lipsi nor the party responsible for the October 4 attack had been officially established in the initial maritime security warnings.