SKIPANES © CIMC Raffles

Engine room fire aboard Smyril Line newbuilding during delivery voyage

Ro-roAn engine room fire broke out aboard Smyril Line’s newbuilding SKIPANES on the afternoon of 2 September during its delivery voyage from China to the North Atlantic. The previous day, SKIPANES had departed Ningbo, China after delivery from CIMC Raffles last month, on its delivery voyage, with the first scheduled stopover in Port Louis, Mauritius, on 13 September. According to a press release from Smyril Line, the crew quickly extinguished the fire, and none of the vessel’s 23 crew members were injured in the incident.

The fire occurred when SKIPANES was around 20 nautical miles off the coast of Taiwan. The vessel subsequently diverted to a Chinese shipyard for inspection, and the company says it is therefore not yet possible to determine when it will be able to continue its delivery voyage.

“Naturally, we at Smyril Line regret that our new vessel has been involved in an incident. At the same time, however, we are pleased that no one was injured and that all members of the crew are safe. Their next of kin have been informed of the incident,” Smyril Line said in a press release.

The 30,301 GT SKIPANES, with a capacity of 3,300 lane metres, is the second of two newbuildings ordered by Smyril Line from CIMC Raffles. However, SKIPANES was the first of the pair to be delivered, as technical problems with the first vessel, AKRANES, resulted in SKIPANES overtaking it in the production schedule.

sep 04 2026