Britons on board hijacked Saudi tanker named

LONDON (Reuters) - Two Britons on board a Saudi supertanker hijacked by pirates off Kenya were named by the Foreign Office on Wednesday.

Peter French from County Durham, the chief engineer, and James Grady from Strathclyde, second officer, were among the 25 crew on board the Sirius Star, which was seized 450 miles southeast of Mombasa at the weekend.

In a statement, the men's families said they appreciated the concern people had expressed and hoped the pair would be home safely soon.

The huge tanker, which was carrying $100 million (66 million pounds) of oil, is the biggest ship ever to have been hijacked. It was believed to be anchored near Eyl, a former Somali fishing village that is now a well-defended pirate base.

Earlier on Wednesday, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal said the tanker's owners were in negotiations over a possible ransom payment.

(Reporting by Michael Holden)