Foro de Inteligencia, Espionaje y Servicios Secretos

Blackwater offering to protect ships from pirates near Somalia

By Jeff Bliss
Bloomberg
Published: October 16, 2008

Blackwater Worldwide, whose security guards came under scrutiny after a 2007 fatal shootout in Iraq, is looking to the high seas to expand business, marketing its security services to shippers plagued by pirates.
Blackwater is in talks with several companies about protecting ships traveling through the Gulf of Aden between Yemen and Somalia, where piracy is increasing, said officials of the Moyock, North Carolina-based company.

"We have the capability to assist" shipping companies, said Bill Mathews, Blackwater executive vice president. He and other company leaders are former Navy SEALs. Ship security "is kind of what we did for a living" before joining Blackwater, he said.

Blackwater is offering the MV MacArthur, a 183-foot vessel with a crew of 14 and a helicopter pad, as an escort for ships through the Gulf of Aden. The helicopters and MacArthur won't be armed, although workers will carry guns, Mathews said.

The company will need a State Department license to sell its services to a foreign government or business, said Anne Tyrrell, a Blackwater spokeswoman.

The company isn't seeking new U.S. security contracts in Iraq, where a Blackwater team was involved in the killing of 17 Iraqi civilians while guarding a State Department convoy in September 2007. The deaths are being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The State Department paid Blackwater more than $832 million to provide security between 2004 and 2006, about half of the money under a no-bid contract awarded in June 2004.

Security in the Gulf of Aden, which ships traverse to go through the Suez Canal, has been a growing problem. The number of attacks off the coast of Somalia jumped to 44 in 2007 from 10 in 2004, according to the International Martime Bureau. Somali pirates are holding a Ukrainian ship they hijacked last month in a bid for ransom.

Without a secure route to the Suez canal, which 21,080 vessels used in the first half of this year, shippers can either pay more insurance to hedge against losses to pirates or take a longer, more costly route around Africa's Cape of Good Hope.

BLACKWATER WORLDWIDE’S MARITIME OPERATIONS
READY TO ASSIST SHIPPING INDUSTRY

As Insurance and Pay Rates Soar for Gulf of Aden-bound Shipments,
Blackwater offers Shipping Industry a Solution

MOYOCK, North Carolina (October 16, 2008) – Blackwater Worldwide today announced that its 183 foot ship, the McArthur, stands ready to assist the shipping industry as it struggles with the increasing problem of piracy in the Gulf of Aden and elsewhere.

The dramatic increase of pirate attacks on merchant vessels in the Gulf of Aden has led to parallel cost increases for the shipping industry. Shipping insurance has risen tenfold this year alone. With the added danger pay offered to crews willing to make the journey, pirate ransom demands that reach into the millions, and lengthy negotiations for hijacked ships, if left unaddressed the cost of the piracy boom to the shipping industry – and consumers buying their goods – will only increase.

“Billions of dollars of goods move through the Gulf of Aden each year,” said Bill Matthews, Executive Vice President of Blackwater Worldwide. “We have been contacted by ship owners who say they need our help in making sure those goods get to their destination safely. The McArthur can help us accomplish that.”

Some shippers have taken the step of arming their crews, or hiring private security to ride onboard cargo ships. Rather than having armed guards on a cargo vessel, the McArthur’s ability to accompany a ship and deploy helicopters to patrol the area provides a safer option for the shipping industry.

The McArthur was reconfigured and modified in 2006 and is now a Blackwater Worldwide Maritime Security Support Craft. The McArthur is a multi-purpose maritime vessel designed to support military and law enforcement training, peacekeeping, and stability operations worldwide. It is fully equipped with a helo deck and can store 4,100 gallons of helo fuel. Blackwater’s aviation affiliate can provide the helicopters, pilots, and maintenance required to support escort missions in the Gulf of Aden.
As a company founded and run by former Navy SEALs, with a 50,000-person database of former military and law enforcement professionals, Blackwater is uniquely positioned to assist the shipping industry in the Gulf of Aden and elsewhere.

The International Maritime Bureau estimates that more than 70 ships have been attacked off Somalia since January. As of October 15, 2008, 11 ships and 200 crew members were still being held for ransom.

Guided by integrity, innovation, accountability, and a desire for a safer world, Blackwater Worldwide leverages state-of-the-art training facilities, professional program management teams, and innovative manufacturing and production capabilities to deliver world-class, customer-driven solutions.