Biya regime clamps down on shadow fleet as flag purge begins ⁰

Following pressure from the European Union and Ukraine, Cameroon’s government is finally clamping down on shadow ships using its register.

Cameroon’s flag has grown by 126% over the past 12 months and is now Africa’s third-largest, according to data from Clarksons Research, largely thanks to Russian-linked tonnage entering its books. The average age of ships flying the Cameroon flag is 32.7 years.

Prime minister Joseph Dion Ngute, has now taken steps to purge the country’s flag of dark fleet tonnage. Cameroon has suspended new registrations of ships thought to be part of the shadow fleet, as well as setting out to deregister shadow ships that are already on its books.

Splash has reported repeatedly about accidents involving ageing Cameroon tonnage around the world in recent years, such as the grounding of the Liberty suezmax off Batam in late 2023 (pictured).

Source: Splash 247