A tanker now held by Somali pirates has a years-long pattern of disappearing from vessel tracking systems for extended periods, according to data from Pole Star Global, adding a new dimension to a piracy wave that has left as many as six vessels in pirate hands.

The Tanzanian-flagged tanker Asana, seized off Yemen in mid-July and now believed held off Somalia, has transmitted no position since 05:22 UTC on July 17, 2026. That blackout fits a pattern: Pole Star Global data shows the vessel carries a "Critical" gap rating, with tracking gaps of 102, 96, 48, 37, 32, 29, 27 and 24 days recorded across 2024 and 2025, long before the hijacking.

The vessel has also passed through several operators over the past decade, Pole Star Global's ownership records show. Its current owner, Exon Energy Inc, is not sanctioned. A previous operator and manager, Russia-based Valkur LLC, which managed the ship from 2015 to 2023, is now listed under French, Monaco, EU and Swiss sanctions tied to Russia's war in Ukraine, though those sanctions were imposed years after the company's link to the vessel ended.

Somali piracy has surged since April, with the Cameroon-flagged cargo ship Lutuf the most recent confirmed hijacking. Pole Star Global data shows Lutuf stopped transmitting at 11:35 UTC on August 17, roughly four nautical miles off Mareeyo, Somalia, closely matching a UK Maritime Trade Operations report that armed men boarded the vessel around 1136 UTC that day.

As Somali piracy returns to levels not seen in a decade, Pole Star Global data shows the vessels being targeted often carry years-long histories of vanishing from tracking systems and passing through opaque or since-sanctioned ownership structures.