Five tonnes of oil leaked off Changi during bunkering between a tanker and a bulk carrier
Posted on Oct 31, 2024 at 06:10 PM
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) revealed details of an oil leak event that happened off Changi around 5:40 p.m. on October 28 in a Facebook update on Tuesday.
The incident happened during a bunkering operation between a licensed bunker tanker and the Bahamas-flagged bulk carrier ship INES CORRADO.
No oil was discovered as of 8 a.m. on October 29, and there was no impact on navigational traffic. An investigation is ongoing.
The Occurrence: A Five-Ton Oil Spill
The Port of Singapore is the world's largest bunkering port, responsible for providing fuel for ships. The process, known as bunkering, resulted in approximately five tonnes of oil spilling into the water, according to the MPA.
When MPA vessels reached the site at around 5:50 p.m., they immediately sprayed dispersants throughout the impacted region.
Moreover, chemical compounds known as dispersants are made to break up oil spills into tiny droplets that thereafter dilution occurs throughout the water and are more readily broken down by microorganisms.
The MPA stated that there was no oil found at sea in the area of the event as of 8 a.m. on October 29 and that nautical traffic was unaffected.
In case any of the fuel leak was discovered, the MPA sent out a Current Buster, a device made specially to remove oil from water, off Changi as a precaution.
Additionally, officials in Malaysia and Singapore have been warned to stay alert for any oil sightings. An inquiry into the event will be carried out, the MPA has said.
The Leak Events Timeline & Precautions
This incident occurred a little over a week after a major energy firm, Shell, leaked a pipeline, causing an oil spill on October 20 that prompted a massive containment operation.
Shell and MPA deployed containment booms and extra dispersant-equipped ships in response to the leak, which involved between 30 and 40 metric tonnes of "slop" (a mixture of water and oil).
After clean-up operations, Shell stated that while there were still minor oil sheens in a few isolated areas close to Bukom and Bukom Kechil islands, the remainder of the leak surrounding Bukom had been contained.
Following the completion of safety inspections, the initial post-spill swimming advice was rescinded on October 25 in the vicinity of the East Coast and the Southern Islands.
June Incident
At Pasir Panjang Terminal in June, a 400-ton fuel leak occurred as a consequence of a collision between the Vox Maxima, a dredger flying the flag of the Netherlands, and Marine Honour, a bunker ship that was stationary and flying the flag of Singapore.
This mishap caused a significant volume of low-sulfur gasoline to spill into the nearby seas and was ascribed to the dredger's abrupt loss of steering and engine control.
Oil washed ashore on several beaches, including Sentosa Island, East Coast Park, and Labrador Nature Reserve, causing a significant environmental effect.
Following closure for cleanup, 800 staff members and more than 2,300 volunteers worked to clean up these sites. The first leak was followed by two months of operations being finished.
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