USA warns: Leak in tanker poses increasing risk of pollution for the Red Sea

(Bloomberg) —

An abandoned oil tanker attacked by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in the Red Sea a week ago appears to be on fire and leaking, raising the risk of an environmental disaster, a Pentagon spokesman said Tuesday.

These comments underline once again what the European Union naval forces in the region describe as an imminent threat to the environment and a potentially serious ecological disaster.

However, the bloc's Aspides operation said there was no oil spill and the ship was anchored, contradicting US comments that there were oil leaks and a British Navy post suggesting the ship was drifting.

The 900-foot Sounio was carrying 150,000 tons of Iraqi crude oil when it was disabled by Houthi militias last week. The crew was rescued and more fires were discovered on board on Friday. Yemen's Houthi militias subsequently released a video showing an attack and explosion.

The images show the difficulty of dealing with environmental damage in what ship insurers consider a war zone. The Pentagon has said the Houthis warned salvage teams not to approach the tanker. So far, the militants have made no public statements suggesting they could safely approach the stricken vessel.

In the worst-case scenario, if the entire cargo were to spill, the Sounion would be the fifth-largest oil spill on record – more than previous incidents such as the Sanchi disaster near China and far more than the Exxon Valdez. There is currently nothing to suggest that such an outcome is likely, but it is still unclear how a leak might be dealt with.

Modern oil transport ships have multiple tanks and two hulls to limit possible leaks. However, it is still unclear where exactly the leak is.

“Sounio “It now lies immobilized in the Red Sea, where it is currently burning and appears to be leaking oil, posing both a navigational hazard and an environmental disaster,” Major General Patrick Ryder said at a press conference.

Commercial vessels transiting the Red Sea have been a frequent target of the Houthis since last year, when the Iran-backed militants stepped up their retaliation against Israel's activities in Gaza. Thousands of vessels, from container ships to oil tankers, have chosen to avoid the area, although a handful of ship owners are happy to continue to run the gauntlet.

Warned away

Ryder said two tugboats from a third-party company were sent to the burning Sounion to assist with the salvage, but the Houthis had been warned to hold them back. U.S. Central Command is actively monitoring the situation and coordinating with maritime partners on how best to assist the vessel, he added.

“The cleanup and remediation efforts will be difficult because the Houthis are threatening to attack any supporting ships, while they themselves have limited capacity to deal with the oil spills off the coast of Yemen,” says Wim Zwijnenburg, project manager at Dutch company PAX, who has been studying satellite imagery for ten years to identify the environmental impacts of conflict.

According to his analysis, it was leaking engine oil, but thick clouds and plumes of smoke made it difficult to evaluate the satellite images, he said.

The tanker was hired by Greek oil refiner Motor Oil, say people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified because the information is not public. The Athens-based company did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Near Eritrea

The Pentagon's statement is the first official mention of a possible leak after the EU naval presence in the region said earlier this week there were no obvious signs of an oil spill.

Satellite images monitored by Bloomberg since August 25 show the tanker ablaze in the southern Red Sea, about 90 miles west of the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah and about 40 miles southwest of the coast of Eritrea.

The International Maritime Organization, the UN's shipping agency, said it was monitoring the incident following an operation to salvage a dilapidated 47-year-old ship near Yemen last year.

“The risk of an oil spill, which poses an extremely serious threat to the environment, remains high and there is widespread concern about the damage such a spill would cause in the region,” Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said in a statement.

The IMO can provide technical support to governments affected by a major oil spill upon request, a spokesman said. The organization is currently in discussions with national and regional authorities and the UN about a possible request for support.

If the ship were to cause an oil spill, member states would not be entitled to compensation from the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund, a spokesman said. Such payments would be excluded if the damage was the result of acts of war, hostilities, civil war or insurrection, they added.

The ship is owned and operated by the Greek shipping company Delta Tankers. The crew was evacuated a day after the attack with the assistance of the French Navy. Two other ships belonging to the shipping company were also targeted earlier this month, according to a report by naval forces in the region.

When asked about a possible leak, a Delta Tankers spokesman referred to an earlier statement.

It said the company is “doing everything it can to move the vessel (and cargo). For safety reasons, we are unable to comment further.”

© 2024 Bloomberg L.P.

Get exclusive insights today!

Join the gCaptain Club for curated content, insider opinions, and lively community discussions.