Somali Pirates very active again

[jay_merrill]

Re: Somali Pirates very active again

Just out of curiosity, does anyone have any idea what the total amount of ransom is, that has been paid to date? Similarly, does anyone know what the cost to shippers has been in terms of frieght not delivered for months, interest costs, etc.?



???

 

[angus63]

Re: Somali Pirates very active again

Just out of curiosity, does anyone have any idea what the total amount of ransom is, that has been paid to date? Similarly, does anyone know what the cost to shippers has been in terms of frieght not delivered for months, interest costs, etc.?



???

All ransoms so far are from foreign companies and much of the activity is not disclosed. Estimates I've read range from 50 million to 200 million since 2008. The cost to shippers has many facets. The main cost is the difference between insurance coverage and the worth of the cargo. Add in the difference between what is owed on the vessel and it's value. Throw in the opportunity cost for a vessel not making money. And last but not least, the "value" of a hijacked crew.

The pirates do not have the equipment to offload bulk cargo, crude, or containers, so they're not intersted in what is being carried other than small hand-carried pilferring and ransom for the crew.

Pirates threaten to scuttle the vessel and murder the crew, and foreign companies add up their costs and make an offer.

The piracy goes beyond merchant vessels to include private pleasure, fishing and cruise vessels.

It also extends beyond Somalia, especially in Indonesia where it is rampant but has not grabbed the world's attention yet.

 

[soggy_feet]

Re: Somali Pirates very active again

One of the big hurdles is the cost of ransom vs arming ships.

At this point, its cheaper to just pay the money (don't worry, insurance covers it), than it is to higher security. Start putting guns onboard, and insurance goes up. Given the odds of getting hijacked vs making it to port, its not cost effective to do any more than pay your standard insurance, and hope everything goes well.

 

[ezbtr]

Re: Somali Pirates very active again

free target practice for a scoped M14...................

 

[redeye1962]

Re: Somali Pirates very active again

Maybe we need our hero Obama to personally kill the maritime entrepreneurs like he did before. They will learn not to fool with us.

 

[soggy_feet]

Re: Somali Pirates very active again

Anyone ever hear of what happened with the pirate they captured while freeing that ship captain from down the road?

No follow up with the news these days...

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: Somali Pirates very active again

Nope, but a few of the pirates got a nasty little surprise the other day.

It seems that a fishing boat that was about 350 miles offshore, was attacked by them. What the pirates didn't know, is that there were a bunch of European Union soldiers aboard, who "lit them up" with some automatic weapons fire. The hijackers were captured and transferred to a warship, which arrived on the scene later.

I know that there are all sort of onternational treaties and laws involved, but this is exactly what I have been talking about - its tiime to take action. Sitting around claiming that nothing can be done is not acceptable. This is terrorism and it no less so that what has been going on in other forms.

If the pirates want to use RPGs, which have a maximum range of about 1,100 meters in the best of conditions, let's see how they make out againt a couple of Barret, 50 cal sniper rifles with a 2,000 meter range. Heck, the shooters wouldn't even have to kill the pirates - putting as few holes in their small boats would probably be enough to send them running like dogs.



???