On the afternoon of 8 March, the Norwegian-owned vessel BWEK Beauty arrived in the capital of occupied Western Sahara, El Aaiún. The ship was transporting gas on behalf of Moroccan interests. The cargo was, in all likelihood, loaded at a gas terminal in either the Portuguese port of Sines or Houston, USA, the two ports from which the vessel departed prior to its Western Sahara call.

The ship is owned by the Norwegian company BW Epic Kosan, which for several years has been a key transporter of gas into occupied Western Sahara for Morocco. A report published by the Norwegian Support Committee for Western Sahara in December 2021 revealed that 23 out of 43 of the most recent shipments to the territory had been conducted by BW Epic Kosan. Six out of 14 shipments in 2023 were made by vessels from the same fleet, according to our findings.

Now, it has happened again. On 9 March 2025, in the afternoon, the vessel BWEK Beauty called at the port of El Aaiún.

The Norwegian Support Committee for Western Sahara wrote to BW Epic Kosan on 30 September 2021. Letters were also sent to BW Epic Kosan and BW Group on 24 November 2020, 24 December 2020, 7 January 2021, 30 May 2021, 22 September 2021, 24 November 2021, 4 May 2023, 5 October 2023, and 10 January 2024. The company has never responded to any of these approaches.

“We are convinced that it is not in the interest of BW Group or BWEK to be further associated with the continued colonisation and occupation of Western Sahara, and we urge you to immediately clarify that you have no intention of continuing such shipments,” the letter states.

The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs advises against Norwegian engagement in the territory, which is occupied by Morocco. Half of Western Sahara’s people have been forced into exile, while serious human rights abuses are committed against Saharawis fighting for their legitimate right to self-determination.

The EU Court of Justice issued further rulings in October 2024, confirming that EU–Morocco trade agreements cannot be applied to Western Sahara.

The parent company of BW Epic Kosan, BW Group, has a significant presence in Norway. The Chairman of BW Epic Kosan, Andreas Sohmen-Pao, also chairs BW Group.

The company is controlled by BW Group – its largest shareholder – together with the Danish company J. Lauritzen A/S. The latter has been contacted by the Danish sister organisation of the Support Committee, but the shipping company has not responded. Odfjell also acquired a small shareholding in 2021.

The restructuring of the shipping company included a name change (BW Epic Kosan was previously Epic Gas) and was completed thanks to a USD 155 million refinancing package from SEB, Danske Bank, Nordea, Danish Ship Finance, and Crédit Agricole CIB.