Successful regional trip for first all-Seychellois tanker crew |06 December 2019

The all-Seychellois crew in a souvenir photograph

Seychelles Petroleum Company Ltd has scripted history in its tanker service by operating its regional tanker MT Seychelles Paradise with a full Seychellois crew on its journey to and from Port Louis, Mauritius, where it bunkered a gasoil consignment to oil rig Q7000.

MT Seychelles Paradise left the country on November 25, 2019 with a cargo of 1,000,000 litres of gasoil and a 12-member Seychellois crew, under the command of young captain Roy Buisson and chief officer Jean-Paul Fanchette.

Prior to this trip to Mauritius, MT Seychelles Paradise undertook its first all-Seychellois crew trip to Praslin to deliver its regular supply of fuel to the island, under the command of newly graded captain Jean-Paul Fanchette. Braving rough seas and challenging weather conditions, the Seychellois crew safely berthed in Port Victoria on Wednesday at 8pm.

Since joining the Seychelles Petroleum Company Ltd (Seypec) fleet of tankers in 2009, MT Seychelles Paradise has always been operated by a crew comprising of both foreign and Seychellois mariners and officers. Effective November 1, 2019, Seychellois Martin Roucou took over from the German chief engineer, effectively cementing the crew for MT Seychelles Paradise as being Seychellois nationals.

Seypec remains committed to its policy of making available training opportunities for local mariners for the benefit of our small island nation. Our strategy is to continue to attract, recruit and train young Seychellois enthusiasts with the help of our strategic partner German Tanker Shipping (GTS) in order to have an-all Seychellois crew on all our tankers.

The achievement of running one of its tankers with a 100% Seychellois crew is a feat in itself after just five years of following the seafarers training programme.

Seypec communiqué

Photo sources: Seypec