Russian forces have reportedly damaged a Ukrainian product tanker at the Black Sea port of Ochakov.
Ukrainian Shipping Magazine said the 3,200-dwt Brentix (built 1980) was struck by a single cluster munition on Wednesday.
The vessel has been berthed at the grain and tanker terminal since arriving from Tartous in Syria in December.
The ship has no cargo on board.
The fire was extinguished by the crew and there were no casualties.
Photos show a large hole torn in the blue-coloured hull on the port side near the stern, just under the vessel’s name.
Damage has also been caused to internal pipework and equipment.
VesselsValue assesses the ship as worth $1.1m.
The tanker has been owned by Fenix Oil of Mykolaiv in Ukraine since 2017.
The Tanzania-flagged ship was built at Brodrene Lothe in Norway.
The ship is classed by Rina in Italy.
Casualties mount
Ukraine’s ports have remained closed since the Russian invasion in February.
Estimates of the number of Russian mines in the Black Sea now range from 400 to 600.
And the list of shipping casualties of the war keeps getting longer.
In April, a Dominica-flagged general cargoship at anchor at Mariupol sank after three days of Russian shelling.
A fire broke out aboard the 6,142-gt Azburg (built 1995) before it was lost, Dominica flag state officials said.
Crew member killed
In March, a seafarer was killed in an attack in the Black Sea on a bulker owned by the Bangladeshi government.
Bangladesh Shipping Corp’s (BSC) 38,894-dwt Banglar Samriddhi (built 2018) was struck by a missile while anchored at Olvia, more than 100 km from Odessa.
Also in March, a Panama-flagged general cargoship sank near Odessa after an attack.
The 2,086-dwt Helt (built 1985) could have struck a mine before sinking, Estonia ship manager Vista Shipping Agency told Reuters.
That was the firth confirmed attack on vessels in the Black Sea since the war began on 24 February.
