Suez Canal Authority Rescues and Tows Tanker MT Alyssum After Engine Failure

The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) reported that it successfully completed a salvage and towing operation for the tanker MT Alyssum, after the vessel suffered a sudden failure of its main engines off the coast of El Alamein, Egypt. The vessel was transferred to the Port Said anchorage area, where it awaited maintenance and repair work.

The maneuver was carried out by the SCA's salvage tug Mohamed Beshir, after the Egyptian maritime agency Sphinx Shipping Agency requested assistance in the emergency. According to the Chairman and Managing Director of the Suez Canal Authority, Admiral Ossama Rabiee, the tow covered a distance of 180 nautical miles and was completed in record time, although the authority did not specify the exact duration of the operation nor when the failure occurred.

The MT Alyssum is a chemical tanker built in 2006 by the South Korean shipyard Hyundai Mipo Dockyard. According to the Russian source Ports News, it has a deadweight of 37,273 tonnes, a length overall of 182.55 meters and a gross tonnage of 23,260 tonnes, and is registered under the Russian company Global Seaway LLC as owner, commercial manager and safety management company. Portal Portuario, meanwhile, reported a length overall of 182.5 meters, a beam of 43.5 meters, a total tonnage of 23,000 tonnes and a draft of 11.2 feet, according to data provided by the Egyptian authority.

According to Ports News, the vessel previously operated under the names Baltic Monarch, Mona and Miley, and was designated as blocked property by the US Department of the Treasury in January 2024 under the name Mona, when it was beneficially owned by the UAE-based firm Hennesea Holdings Limited. Subsequently, the United Kingdom imposed shipping sanctions on the vessel in September 2025 under the name Miley.

Rabiee highlighted that the intervention demonstrated the institution's technical and operational capabilities in maritime salvage and noted that the SCA remains ready to provide rescue and towing services both inside and outside the canal, as well as vessel repair and maintenance, oil spill control and maritime medical assistance. Among the equipment in its fleet, he mentioned the recent addition of the CC floating crane, with a lifting capacity of 2,200 tonnes.