Current status

As of March 4 at 10:30 CET, our crews on board and team in Dubai remain safe and have not been directly affected by recent incidents. Odfjell currently has four vessels in the Persian Gulf, including one owned and three time-chartered (TC). 

  • Bow Saga has a crew of 29 Philippine seafarers on board. Crewing and operators maintain close contact, offering tailored support to help ensure safety and well-being on board. 
     
  • The crews on TC vessels Bow Victory, Bow Mercury, and Bow Lion are safe and supported by Synergy Ship Management. Odfjell Tankers remains in close dialogue with Synergy and vessel owners for operational and commercial considerations.
     
  • Our four colleagues in Dubai are safe. Contingency measures are in place, and they remain in close contact with each other and with the Bergen team.


​A dedicated team of colleagues from Executive Management, Tankers and Ship Management meets regularly to address the evolving situation, having our crews' safety and well-being as the top priority. 

Operational measures

While we recognize the broader implications of the conflict, our primary focus remains on the safety of our people. We continuously inform our customers about our priorities.

Embarking seafarers will be followed up by crewing for all relevant information and logistics. Other colleagues who are planning travels must check the most up-to-date travel advice and internal guidelines before confirming any bookings. 

Guidance for colleagues

If you receive inquiries from your network, you may share the following message:

We are monitoring the situation closely. At this point, we have one owned and three TC vessels in the Middle East Gulf. The crew is being closely followed up, and our top priority is to ensure the safety of our people.

There is high media interest in this situation. CEO Harald Fotland serves as Odfjell’s external spokesperson, and all media inquiries are handled by him and the communications team. If you are approached by reporters, please refrain from commenting and refer them to media@odfjell.com for follow-up.

We also encourage all employees to be mindful on social media. Please review the company’s guidelines and recommendations, see key contents here.

As this situation continues to evolve, we are doing our best to stay ahead of potential scenarios. We are also assisting the involved customers wherever possible.

The contingency team continues to meet daily. While it remains difficult to predict how the conflict will develop, our priority is clear: the safety of our people always comes first.