More Than 1 Million Oil Barrels Removed From Decaying Tanker Near Yemen, UN Says

The transfer of 1.1 million barrels of oil from an aging tanker moored off the coast of war-torn Yemen has been completed, preventing the immediate threat of a massive spill that would have triggered an environmental catastrophe

UNITED NATIONS, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Aug, 2023 ) :The transfer of 1.1 million barrels of oil from an aging tanker moored off the coast of war-torn Yemen has been completed, preventing the immediate threat of a massive spill that would have triggered an environmental catastrophe.

The cargo of oil aboard the tanker -- FSO Safer -- has been pumped onto the replacement vessel MOST Yemen (formerly Nautica) in a ship-to-ship transfer that began on July 25, following preparations on site for the operation that began in May by leading marine salvage company SMIT, a subsidiary of Boskalis.

The UN Development Programme (UNDP), which contracted SMIT, is implementing the operation.

As much of the 1.14 million barrels had been extracted as possible, the UN said, that less than 2 percent of the original oil cargo remains mixed in with sediment that would be removed during the final cleaning of the Safer.

"I welcome the news that the transfer of oil from the FSO Safer has been safely concluded today. The United Nations-led operation has prevented what could have been an environmental and humanitarian catastrophe on a colossal scale," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement.

UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said: "Today is a proud moment for the many people across the UN System as well as our donors and partners who have worked tirelessly over the past months and years to avert a disaster in a country already vulnerable following protracted conflict.

"There is still work to be done, but today we can say with confidence that the immediate threat of a spill has been averted." The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, David Gressly, who has led UN system-wide efforts on the Safer since September 2021, said: "Today is a great milestone. A remarkable global coalition came together under the UN umbrella to prevent the worst-case scenario of a catastrophic oil spill in the Red Sea.

"We need to finish the work the UN started. The installation of a CALM buoy to which the replacement vessel will be safely tethered is the next crucial step."