LIBRA-XS (IMO 9282742) detained at Yingkou, October 2026
The 23-year-old Supramax bulker LIBRA-XS has been detained at Yingkou, China, marking the vessel's first recorded detention in over two decades of service and 66 prior port state control inspections without a single hold. The detention comes nine months after a change in ISM management and amid a sharp uptick in deficiency findings during 2026 inspections.
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LIBRA-XS was detained at the port of Yingkou, China, on 8 October 2026. The vessel is flagged in Panama and classed by Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK). The ISM company on record at the time of detention is listed as Mulau Shipmanagement (HK) Limited in the THETIS filing, though the vessel's due diligence report identifies Wahsin Ship Management HK Ltd as the current ISM manager since January 2026. The number of deficiencies and their codes have not yet been published. The vessel had arrived at Yingkou with an ETA of 5 October, and its last reported position was in East Asia.
The vessel
LIBRA-XS is a geared Supramax bulk carrier built in 2003 by Tsuneishi Shipbuilding in Japan. She measures 189.99 metres LOA with a beam of 32.26 metres, a gross tonnage of 30,058 and a deadweight of 52,441 tonnes. She is fitted with four 30-tonne cranes. The vessel is powered by a two-stroke MAN B&W 6S50MC diesel engine and was last reported making 11.8 knots at a draught of 12 metres. She flies the Panamanian flag, having switched from Malta in January 2024. She is classed by Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK), which took over from Bureau Veritas in mid-2009. The vessel has sailed under three names: originally Nord Ocean under the Hong Kong flag, then Oktem Aksoy under Malta from 2009, and LIBRA-XS since January 2024.
Inspection history
The PSC record for LIBRA-XS is extensive and, until very recently, remarkably clean. Across 66 inspections spanning January 2004 to April 2026, the vessel accumulated 76 total deficiencies and zero detentions. That translates to a deficiency rate of roughly 1.2 per inspection, a figure well below the fleet average for a vessel of this age and type. The vessel was inspected across eight MoU regimes: Tokyo (18), USCG (12), Paris (10), Indian Ocean (9), Mediterranean (8), Viña del Mar (7), Black Sea (1), and Abuja (1). She passed USCG examinations 12 times, including calls at Houston, New Orleans, Baltimore, and Boston, without a single deficiency on most occasions. The vessel cleared expanded inspections at Bilbao (Paris MoU, September 2025) with zero deficiencies and at Koper (Paris MoU, June 2024) with seven deficiencies but no detention. The concerning trend is concentrated in 2026. Three inspections this year produced a combined 19 deficiencies: 3 at Iskenderun in January, 12 at Novorossiysk in February (an expanded inspection under the Black Sea MoU), and 4 at Jiangyin in April. The Jiangyin inspection identified fire safety issues (structural integrity and means of escape), a deficient lifebuoy, and an AIS problem. The 12-deficiency result at Novorossiysk is particularly notable; it is the highest single-inspection deficiency count in the vessel's entire record, surpassing six deficiencies found at Port Kembla back in April 2009. The trajectory from near-spotless through 2025 to a rapid accumulation of findings in early 2026 is stark.
Ownership and management
The vessel has passed through several hands. She was originally owned by Takanawa Line Inc and managed by Taiyo Sangyo Trading & Marine, then transferred to Synergy Marine Copenhagen AS in February 2007, which held all three roles (owner, commercial manager, ISM manager). In May 2009, ownership moved to Black Eagle Shipping Co Ltd, with Akmar Shipping & Trading SA taking over commercial management and, from March 2014, ISM management. Both Akmar and Black Eagle held their positions until January 2024. In January 2024, ownership and commercial management transferred to XCL Libra Ltd, a Hong Kong-registered single-purpose entity. ISM management went to Yihai Ship Management Pte Ltd at the same time. Just under two years later, in January 2026, ISM management changed again, this time to Wahsin Ship Management HK Ltd, a company with a fleet of only three vessels. The THETIS detention record, however, names a different entity, Mulau Shipmanagement (HK) Limited, as the ISM company. This discrepancy between the due diligence report and the detention filing is unresolved in the available data. Two ISM manager changes in two years, following a full change of ownership, represents significant management churn for a vessel that previously had long, stable management tenures.
Risk profile
VesselScore rates LIBRA-XS at 36.8 out of 100, placing her in the "very high risk" calibration band with an observed detention probability of 10.2%. The score is driven by several compounding factors. Age is the first: at 23 years old, the vessel receives the maximum 10 points on the age baseline component. The severity mix of recent deficiencies also scores at maximum (10 out of 10), reflecting the fire safety and life-saving appliance issues recorded in 2026. The deficiency rate component scores 14.2 out of a possible 15, consistent with the sharp increase in findings this year. The detention component contributes 10 out of 20 points; with this current detention now on record, that figure will increase at the next scoring run. Management churn adds 5 out of 15 possible points. Flag and class together contribute 6 out of 10. Panama is a high-volume open registry, and while ClassNK is an IACS member, the combination with Panama carries moderate risk weighting. AIS behaviour analysis shows no dark-shipping gaps but three loitering events, contributing 3 out of 5 points. Hull condition degradation is modest at 5.8%, earning only 1 out of 5. The vessel is clear on sanctions and casualty records.
What to watch
The immediate question is the nature and number of deficiencies that triggered this detention; those details have not yet been published in THETIS. The release timeline will depend on rectification, particularly if the detention involves the same fire safety and life-saving appliance categories flagged at Jiangyin in April 2026. Charterers should note that this vessel will now carry a detention on its record for the first time, which will increase targeting priority for PSC authorities in Paris, Tokyo, and other MoU regimes for the next 36 months. The discrepancy between the ISM company named in the detention filing (Mulau Shipmanagement) and the ISM manager listed in the vessel's registry (Wahsin Ship Management) should be clarified before any fixture. With two ISM changes since January 2024 and a small managing fleet of three vessels, the operational oversight capacity of the current manager warrants close attention in any pre-fixture vetting.
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