A scene from a movie is playing out off the Bulgarian Black Sea coast. A small tanker, literally “emerging” from nowhere, without valid documents and with only two people on board, has put the institutions in Burgas on edge, Maritime.bg reports. The story of VIVA 962 (IMO: 8878764) is a knot that has yet to be untied.
Built in 1993 to transport edible oils, the 84-meter VIVA 962, with a deadweight of 2,942 tons, anchored off Cape Emine last week. However, this happens without any prior notification.
During the initial radio communication with the operational authorities, a person posing as the captain states that the VIVA 962 is entering Burgas for repairs. The subsequent quick check, however, reveals the first strange circumstance - there is no assigned shipping agent for the VIVA 962 in Burgas, and the plant has not been notified at all and is not expecting one.
An urgent on-board inspection follows, organized jointly by inspectors of the "Maritime Administration" and the "Border Police", which is taking place near Emine. What the institutions discover on board is shocking - instead of the usual crew that should operate such a vessel, there are only two people on board.
The men present themselves as the captain and the engineer - both Ukrainian citizens. They claim to have made a long and risky crossing from the area of the Russian port "Port Kavkaz". It remains a mystery how the two managed to do it, but with the appearance of VIVA 962, very serious safety questions are raised.
The case takes an even stranger turn when the detailed documentary check begins. It was found that the last valid certificates and documents of the vessel date back to 2024 – and all of them have expired.
“Yes, it is literally a phantom, with nothing to legitimize it as a vessel in international shipping“, a civil servant told Maritime.bg, requesting anonymity, and added with a dose of respect for the two sailors: “The only valid documents were the foreign passports of the two Ukrainians. At least it is certain that they are real sailors, since only two people manage to “bring“ ship to Emine“.
It was also found that VIVA 962 also has a limited amount of fuel. The port captain has ordered the ship to be immediately directed to the raid in Burgas. The court is currently arrested until all circumstances are clarified. Due to the seriousness of the violations, the case is already escalating.
Maritime.bg has learned that the Prosecutor's Office, the "Customs" Agency and the State Agency for National Security (DANS) have been notified. A thorough investigation is underway to establish the true purpose of the voyage, the ownership of the ship and why this high-risk transition was undertaken.