Inspenet, July 27, 2023.
It is expected that the extraction of crude oil and its continued transfer to the replacement tanker called “Yemen” will take 19 days.
The United Nations-led project to prevent a possible massive oil spill from the supertanker FSO Safer, located off the coast of Yemen in the Red Sea, has already begun. The first stage of the project involves the extraction of more than 1 million barrels of oil from the ship , which has been in a dangerous state of disrepair for several years.
The ship poses an imminent threat of fragmentation or explosion and a significant spill of the oil contained in this ship could trigger a serious humanitarian and environmental crisis . Therefore, intervention has become crucial to avoid a catastrophe of devastating proportions.
The logistics behind oil extraction
The oil stored in the aforementioned vessel is being transferred to the replacement vessel Yemen (formerly known as “Nautica”) through a ship-to-ship pumping process, whose estimated duration is 19 days.
Since its arrival on site on May 30, leading marine salvage company SMIT, a Boskalis subsidiary, has managed to stabilize the 47-year-old FSO Safer . The United Nations Development Program (UNDP), in charge of the oil removal operation, has contracted the services of SMIT to carry out this crucial task.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said: “In the absence of someone else willing or able to undertake this task, the United Nations stepped up and took the risk of carrying out this delicate operation. The transfer of ship-to-ship oil is a vital step in avoiding an environmental and humanitarian catastrophe of colossal magnitude.
UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said: “With every liter of oil now pumped from the FSO Safer lessens the threat of a potential spill that has hung over the people of Yemen and the countries and economies that depend on the ecosystem. red sea common The challenges of this project have been enormous, but the response from so many people who have made this rescue operation possible has been just as great. It is a reminder of what the United Nations can achieve through its convening power and ability to coordinate a complex operation.”
On board the salvage ship Ndeavor, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, David Gressly, explained: “The transfer of oil to Yemen will prevent the worst possible scenario, a catastrophic spill in the Red Sea, but this is not the end of the operation. The next critical step is the installation of a CALM buoy to which the replacement vessel will be safely moored. I am grateful to the donors, private companies and the general public for the funds they have given us allowed us to reach this milestone.”
Since September 2021, Mr. Gressly has been in charge of leading the United Nations system-wide actions and programs related to the FSO Safer.
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