APTERA – IMO 9036868 ex VEMAOIL XI / JOLLY FALCON / YUWA MARU – Greek Bunkering Tanker APTERA is a veteran Greek-flagged oil and bunkering tanker built in Japan in 1991, today operating from Piraeus within the Greek coastal petroleum-supply market. Originally delivered as YUWA MARU, the vessel later became JOLLY FALCON and subsequently spent almost fifteen years under the name VEMAOIL XI. In February 2019 she transferred to Greek ownership and became: APTERA. At approximately 105 metres in length and 5,260 tonnes deadweight, she is considerably larger than many harbour bunkering tankers and is capable of both coastal petroleum transportation and ship-to-ship fuel-supply operations. Despite having reached 35 years of age, APTERA remains fully active in 2026 and continues to operate regularly from Piraeus. Vessel Details Current Name: APTERA Former Names: VEMAOIL XI, JOLLY FALCON, YUWA MARU IMO: 9036868 MMSI: 241654000 Call Sign: SVDE7 Type: Oil Tanker / Bunkering Tanker Flag: Greece Port of Registry: Piraeus Delivered: 22 August 1991 Builder: Akitsu / Hiroshima, Japan Builder Listed by Specialist Databases: Shin Kurushima Dockyard Co. Ltd. Current Registered Owner: Aptera Shipping Company Technical Operator / ISM Manager: Zephiros Shipping Company Commercial Operator: Coral Products and Trading A.E. Physical Supplier / Fleet Listing: SEKAVIN Classification: Bureau Veritas Hull: Double Hull Gross Tonnage: approx. 2,975 GT national / 3,207 GT international Deadweight: 5,260 t Length Overall: 105.02 m Beam: 15.50 m Current Status: Active. Built in Japan APTERA was delivered on: 22 August 1991 from a Japanese shipyard in the: Akitsu / Hiroshima area. Specialist photographic databases identify the builder as: Shin Kurushima Dockyard. The vessel was designed for oil-product transportation and has survived through several ownership and registry periods. YUWA MARU The vessel originally entered service as: YUWA MARU. This was her first Japanese identity. She retained that name until the early 2000s. YUWA MARU → JOLLY FALCON In: August 2002 the tanker became: JOLLY FALCON. She also transferred to the: Vietnamese flag during this phase. JOLLY FALCON → VEMAOIL XI Another significant change occurred in: May 2004. The vessel became: VEMAOIL XI. She transferred to the: Malta flag and remained under the VEMAOIL XI identity for almost fifteen years. VEMAOIL XI → APTERA On: 4 February 2019 VEMAOIL XI was renamed: APTERA. She transferred to: Greek flag and: Piraeus registry. The complete principal name history is therefore: YUWA MARU → JOLLY FALCON → VEMAOIL XI → APTERA. Greek Ownership Current documentation identifies: Aptera Shipping Company at Akti Miaouli, Piraeus as the registered owner. Technical management is handled by: Zephiros Shipping Company. Commercial operation is associated with: Coral Products and Trading A.E. while SEKAVIN also lists the tanker in connection with physical fuel-supply operations. Bunkering Role APTERA is frequently described as a: bunkering tanker. This means that in addition to transporting petroleum products between terminals, she can participate in the direct supply of marine fuel to ships. Her: 5,260-tonne deadweight gives her considerably greater cargo capacity than many smaller harbour bunker tankers. Double-Hull Tanker Current technical documentation identifies APTERA as a: double-hull tanker. This is an important feature for an oil tanker of her age and allows her to comply with modern structural and pollution-prevention requirements that eliminated many older single-hull units from petroleum service. Piraeus Connection APTERA has an exceptionally strong connection with Piraeus. She is: Greek flagged registered at Piraeus owned from Piraeus technically managed from Piraeus and regularly operates around the port's petroleum and bunkering sector. She was photographed at: Piraeus anchorage on 16 August 2020. PiraeuShips in 2020 PiraeuShips published its dedicated: APTERA – IMO 9036868 entry in: January 2020. The page has since been substantially enriched with the vessel's full name history, ownership and operator information. Still Active in 2026 APTERA remains fully operational in: 2026. Recent AIS information continues to identify: Greek flag MMSI 241654000 Call Sign SVDE7 and regular activity around: Piraeus. The vessel was again recorded at the port during September 2026. 35 Years in Service By 2026, APTERA has completed: 35 years since delivery. Her continued operation is notable given the increasingly strict regulatory requirements affecting older tankers. The combination of: double-hull construction, continued class maintenance, and a specialised regional bunkering role has enabled the vessel to remain commercially useful long after many contemporaries disappeared. PiraeuShips Record APTERA was recorded by PiraeuShips during the early years of her Greek career as a Piraeus-based bunkering and oil tanker. Delivered in Japan in August 1991 as YUWA MARU, the vessel subsequently became JOLLY FALCON and then spent almost fifteen years as VEMAOIL XI before transferring to Greek ownership in February 2019. Now operated under the Greek flag by Piraeus-based interests, APTERA combines a 5,260-tonne deadweight with double-hull construction and remains active in regional petroleum and bunkering operations. Still operating from Piraeus in 2026 at approximately 35 years of age, the ship represents one of the veteran working tankers preserved in the PiraeuShips visual archive. Original video footage © PiraeuShips. All rights reserved.