Damaged Qatari LNG tanker awaits salvage after strike near Hormuz

LONDON/DOHA, July 8 - Qatari LNG tanker Al Rekayyat is stationary near the Strait of Hormuz and awaiting salvage operations once a fire on board has been extinguished, according to ship tracking data and industry sources on Wednesday, a day after it was hit by a projectile.

The tanker, loaded with liquefied natural gas, was hit on its port side overnight on Tuesday, one source said, while another briefed on the matter added that the vessel was at risk of exploding due to a fire in its engine room.

Efforts are continuing to extinguish the fire, an industry source familiar with the matter told Reuters. All the crew have been safely evacuated.

The LNG stored in the tanker's tanks remains intact and there is no breach of those tanks, the industry source said.

Another industry source assessed that as long as the vessel was not subject to any further attack, it was likely to remain in its current state and not explode.

"Breaching a main tank would be catastrophic," the second industry source added.

Two vessels — a tug boat and a separate service ship — are currently near the tanker, which is located near the entrance of the Strait of Hormuz and close to Oman's coast, the LSEG and MarineTraffic ship tracking data showed.

Nakilat, also known as Qatar Gas Transport Company Ltd, which owns the Al Rekayyat tanker, did not respond to a request for comment, nor did QatarEnergy.

Qatar's foreign ministry said on Tuesday that Iran bore full legal responsibility for the attack, and summoned the deputy Iranian ambassador to protest against the targeting of the tanker.

It is the first time an LNG ship from Qatar, a mediator in talks between the United States and Iran, has been struck since the start of the Iran war on February 28. REUTERS