On 29 July 2026 a drone caused a fire on two gas ships at Egypt’s Damietta LNG berth. The FSRU Energos Winter (IMO 9256614) took the main hit; fire spread to the LNG carrier GasLog Salem (IMO 9638915). Egyptian authorities confirmed the cause and said no one was hurt. Damietta’s import unit is still out of service. Who launched the drone is not identified.

The strike matters because Damietta is one of Egypt’s LNG import points. General cargo work at the port was said to have resumed the next day. The FSRU itself has not returned to duty.

What happened

Egyptian Cabinet and the Ministry of Petroleum confirmed, on 30 July, that a drone started the fire. Winter was alongside for discharge. Early security assessments described a hit on the starboard side. Both ships were moved off the berth the same day.

Official maritime coverage sits in JMIC Update 079, which serializes UKMTO 099-26 and 100-26. Those events sit outside the UKMTO voluntary reporting area and were not issued as standalone public warnings. Eastern Mediterranean threat was still assessed LOW, with new kinetic risk noted.

Iran’s foreign ministry and the Houthis publicly denied involvement. That is a statement, not an identification of the attacker. No group or state has made a confirmed claim. Social posts naming a perpetrator are rumour.

GasLog Salem was in the northbound Suez convoy on 25 July, four days before the Damietta fire.

What happened next

After leaving the berth, Winter grounded outside the entrance channel. Damietta Port Authority and SMIT refloated her on 6 August and towed her to the outer anchorage. AIS still shows her there, at anchor, as of 14 August. There is no public sign of a repair tow.

Salem is no longer at Damietta. Latest public AIS puts her at anchor in the Red Sea / Suez approaches, last at Suez anchorage on 7 August.

Kpler reported no LNG discharge at Damietta since 29 July. The send-out hole is a separate note. A Turkey repair move is reported in MEES only — single source, no official return date. A replacement unit is unconfirmed.

Egypt has used other import routes. Trade press described cargo diversions and higher use of Ain Sokhna and Jordan/Aqaba capacity. Those are workarounds, not a return of Damietta.

After the crew left

Desk file. Not an Egyptian statement. Not a company statement. Not a police report. Not a Bridge note.

After the fire, the crew came off Energos Winter. Ratings: Filipino. Officers: Croatian. Official products say no one was hurt. That part we can stand behind.

What this desk holds, and has not published before: while they were off the ship, locals — Egyptians — boarded Winter and took what they could. Valuables. Computers. Bronze. Equipment the unit needs to run.

When the crew returned, that kit was gone. Putting the FSRU back on the line now means replacing stolen gear, not only repairing fire damage.

This desk does not have a public inventory. It does not have a named official confirmation. It does not say Salem was boarded. It does not name who climbed the gangway.

The operational point is simple. An evacuated FSRU is still a plant. If the plant is stripped, Damietta stays dark after the welders leave.

What we can stand behind

Established

• Egyptian Cabinet and the Ministry of Petroleum confirmed, on 30 July, that a drone started a fire on two gas ships at Damietta on 29 July. No one was hurt.
• Energos Winter (IMO 9256614) took the main hit. Fire spread to GasLog Salem (IMO 9638915). Both were moved off the berth the same day.
• Winter grounded outside the entrance channel. Damietta Port Authority and SMIT refloated her on 6 August and towed her to the outer anchorage. AIS still showed her there on 14 August.
• GasLog said on 1 August that an incident occurred on board on 29 July while alongside Damietta, that the crew were safe, and that there were no injuries or pollution. Salem is not at Damietta now.
• JMIC Update 079 serializes UKMTO 099-26 and 100-26. The events sit outside the VRA and were not standalone public warnings.
• Kpler reported no LNG discharge at Damietta since 29 July.
• Energos Power at Ain Sokhna is a different ship. She is not the Damietta casualty.

Not established

• Who launched the drone. Iran’s MFA and the Houthis denied involvement. That is a statement, not an identification. Social posts naming a perpetrator are rumour.
• A Turkey repair move. Single source (MEES). No official return date.
• A replacement FSRU.
• Official confirmation of the boarding and theft. That file is this desk’s. It is not an Egyptian product and not a company statement.
• What exactly was taken, item by item. This desk does not have an inventory.
• That GasLog Salem was entered or stripped.

Conclusion

The fire took Damietta offline. Missing kit is why putting Winter back is not only a repair job.

An FSRU that has been hit can be surveyed. An FSRU that has been emptied of the gear it needs to run waits on a supply list.

Suggestions

For the terminal and the port. When the crew come off a gas ship, the hull is still a plant. Put a watch on it before the night starts. The restart clock begins when the first computer leaves the CCR, not when the last weld cools.

For Energos / Wilhelmsen / EGAS. Treat the missing operational equipment as the critical path. Fire damage is one list. Stolen kit is another. Damietta does not return on the first list alone.

For the watch. If you leave an FSRU or an LNGC in a hurry, log what you left live — and assume it will not be there when you come back unless someone is on the gangway.

We are not asking the crew to stay on a burning ship to guard laptops. We are not asking Cairo for a sermon. We are asking the people who own the berth to keep the plant intact so the unit can run again.

The ships

Energos Winter (IMO 9256614) is a Marshall Islands–flagged FSRU, built 2004, about 277 metres, owned in the Energos Infrastructure group and managed by Wilhelmsen. She sits at Damietta anchorage. She was at Damietta under a five-year New Fortress Energy–EGAS agreement announced in July 2025.

GasLog Salem (IMO 9638915) is a Bermuda-flagged LNG carrier, built 2015, about 285 metres, managed by GasLog. GasLog said on 1 August that an incident occurred on board on 29 July while alongside Damietta, that the crew were safe, and that there were no injuries or pollution. She is not at Damietta now.

Energos Power, the Malta-flagged FSRU at Ain Sokhna, is a different ship. She is not the Damietta casualty.