Old danger is back

Shipping safer, but piracy makes a comeback

A pirate on the African coast

(Bild: AP)

The world's oceans are becoming safer: the number of shipwrecks has fallen to a record low. But alongside the current wars and conflicts, another old danger is threatening ships and their crews - pirates.

Last year, only 26 larger ships sank worldwide. That was a good third fewer than in the previous year, and in a ten-year comparison a fall of over 70 percent, explains the industrial insurer Allianz Commercial.

In the 1990s, an annual average of more than 200 ships sank, as the insurer writes in the new edition of its annual report on shipping risks published on Wednesday.

Pirate attacks on the rise
In addition to storms and stranding on the coast, piracy is also one of the oldest risks in shipping and, according to Allianz, piracy is experiencing something of a comeback: last year, there were 120 known pirate attacks worldwide, five more than in 2022. According to Allianz Commercial, the most dangerous region in this respect is the Gulf of Guinea on the coast of West Africa, followed by the Strait of Singapore in Southeast Asia.

Heavily armed pirates in Nigeria

(Bild: EPA (Symbolbild))

The major concern, however, is a resurgence of piracy in the Horn of Africa, according to the report. Somali pirates hijacked a ship there in December 2023 for the first time since 2017, and there have been several more attacks since then.

Houthi attacks inspire pirates in Somalia
According to the company's shipping experts, the inspiration for Somali pirates is presumably the many attacks by Islamist Houthi militias on merchant ships in the Red Sea in the wake of the Gaza war. Wars such as those in Gaza and Ukraine also have an indirect effect on the safety of shipping by creating or facilitating consequential dangers.

"Shadow fleet" with Russian oil harbors serious risks 
As one example, the authors cite an international "shadow fleet" of an estimated 600 to 1,400 oil tankers that export Russian oil and have so far been involved in at least 50 incidents, including fires, collisions and oil spills. "These are mostly older, poorly maintained ships, operating outside international regulations and often without adequate insurance," said Justus Heinrich, Head of Marine Insurance in Germany and Switzerland at Allianz Commercial. "This poses serious environmental and safety risks."