ATLANTIS (IMO 8721533) detained at Constanta, September 2026
The Comoros-flagged general cargo ship ATLANTIS was detained at Constanta, Romania, on 25 September 2026, marking the vessel's eleventh detention in a PSC record stretching back to 1998. The 38-year-old vessel, classed by Bulgarian Register of Shipping, has been detained three times in the past 18 months alone, and its VesselScore of 32.5 out of 100 places it firmly in the very high risk band.
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ATLANTIS was detained at Constanta, Romania, on 25 September 2026. The THETIS record names the recognised organisation as Bulgarian Register of Shipping (BRS) and the ISM company as Suenka Ship Co. The number of deficiencies and specific deficiency codes have not yet been published. At the time of the report, AIS data showed the vessel sailing toward Darica, Turkey, with an ETA of 5 October, suggesting she may have already been released or that the AIS destination was set prior to the detention.
The vessel
ATLANTIS is a 2,998 GT, 3,337 DWT general cargo ship built in 1988 at Zavody Tazkeho Strojarstva in Komarno, Slovakia. She measures 115.96 metres LOA with a beam of 13.44 metres and has a nominal capacity of 102 TEU. She is now 38 years old, well beyond the average age for active tonnage in the general cargo segment. The vessel currently flies the Comoros flag, having switched to it from Belize in March 2025. Classification is with Bulgarski Koraben Registar (Bulgarian Register of Shipping), with prior class entries withdrawn from Ukraine Shipping Register, Russian Maritime Register of Shipping, and Russian River Register. The vessel has carried at least five names since 2012: she traded as Dorset from 2016, became Ceres in May 2018, Baykal from August 2018, T-Atlantis from April 2022, and finally ATLANTIS from January 2023.
Inspection history
The PSC record for this vessel is extensive and troubling. Across 66 inspections recorded between November 1998 and August 2026, inspectors logged 403 deficiencies and ten detentions prior to the current one in Constanta. That is a detention rate of roughly one in every six inspections, with an average deficiency count of 6.1 per inspection. The record divides into two distinct eras. From 1998 through 2011, the vessel traded predominantly in northern European waters under Paris MoU inspections. During this period she was detained once, at Saint-Malo in November 1998, with 16 deficiencies. Inspections at ports including Rotterdam, Ghent, Rostock, Cork, and Vlissingen through the 2000s consistently returned zero or low single-digit deficiency counts. From 2012 onward, the picture deteriorated sharply. The vessel shifted trading area to the Black Sea and eastern Mediterranean, and the inspection outcomes worsened in step. She was detained at Rostov-on-Don in May 2012 with 11 deficiencies, then at Aliaga in February 2015 with six. The year 2017 brought a detention at Azov in April with a staggering 31 deficiencies spanning fire safety, lifesaving appliances, ISM compliance, radio communications, navigation equipment, and crew certification. That was followed by a detention at Mykolaiv in September 2017 with 11 deficiencies. 2018 was the worst year on record: three detentions in rapid succession. Azov in May (25 deficiencies), Poti in June (29 deficiencies), and Samsun in July (6 deficiencies). The vessel then went through a relatively calmer period from late 2018 to early 2025, with inspections generating deficiencies but no detentions. That period ended in April 2025, when the vessel was detained at Varna with 20 deficiencies, followed by a detention at Tuapse in May 2025 with 25 deficiencies. The most recent inspection before the current detention, at Tuzla in August 2026, found seven deficiencies across fire detection, lifesaving appliances, structural conditions, ballast water records, oil record book, and SOPEP documentation, but did not result in detention. The current detention at Constanta comes just five weeks later. The inspection activity spans three MoU regimes: 42 inspections under Paris MoU (mostly pre-2012), 14 under Black Sea MoU, and 10 under Mediterranean MoU. The concentration of detentions in the Black Sea and Mediterranean periods is stark.
Ownership and management
The vessel is registered to Suenka Ship Co (IMO company number 6374507), whose address is care of Star Ship Denizcilik in Istanbul. Star Ship Denizcilik (IMO company number 6226382) has served as ISM manager since 27 January 2023 and as ship manager and commercial manager since 25 January 2023. Suenka Ship Co has been the registered owner since the same date. Star Ship Denizcilik operates a fleet of just two vessels. The ownership and management history before January 2023 shows considerable churn. The company history records list an 'UNKNOWN' ISM manager from November 2019, preceded by Global Marine Consulting Ltd as ISM manager from July 2018 and ship/commercial manager at an unspecified date. Before that, MD Shipping Co held both the ship management and ISM roles from April 2012, with Primrose Shipping Ltd (Belize) as registered owner from the same date. Earlier still, Volga-Neva Ltd served as ISM manager from 2004. The flag history reinforces the picture of a vessel that has been passed through multiple registries. Since April 2012, the vessel has flown the flags of Belize, Cambodia, Togo, an unknown flag state, Samoa (recorded with a 'FALSE' notation), Mongolia, Panama, Belize again, and now Comoros. Nine flag changes in 14 years is exceptional even for the lower end of the general cargo market.
Risk profile
The VesselScore stands at 32.5 out of 100, placing the vessel in the 'very high risk' calibration band with a modelled detention probability of 14.4%. Every risk component that could be scored is at or near the maximum penalty. The deficiency rate component (c1) scores the full 15 out of 15 penalty points. The detention history component (c2) scores the maximum 20 out of 20, reflecting the two detentions in 2025. The severity mix of deficiency categories (c3) also scores the full 10 out of 10. The flag and class component (c5) scores the maximum 10 out of 10; Comoros is not an IACS member flag, and Bulgarian Register of Shipping is not a member of the International Association of Classification Societies. The age baseline (c6) also maxes out at 10 out of 10, consistent with a 38-year-old vessel. The one area that does not score at the ceiling is manager churn (c4), at 2.5 out of 15, reflecting the relative stability of the Star Ship Denizcilik management tenure since January 2023. AIS behaviour, sanctions, and casualty components show no additional risk flags.
What to watch
Several items demand attention. The International Ship Security Certificate and Safety Management Certificate issued by BRS both expire on 31 October 2026, and the Document of Compliance expires on 1 November 2026. These are weeks away and any delay in renewal could compound the vessel's difficulties in clearing detention or passing the next inspection. Separately, charterers should note that the vessel's most recent safety certificates were issued in August 2026 with expiry dates of January 2027, indicating short-term certification rather than full five-year cycles. This is consistent with a vessel undergoing transitional or conditional certification. The vessel's trading pattern in the Black Sea and eastern Mediterranean means it will continue to face inspection regimes that have repeatedly detained it. For any party considering a fixture, the record is clear: this vessel has been detained three times in approximately 18 months under the current management, and the trajectory of deficiency counts in 2025 and 2026 shows no improvement.
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