An unnamed Panamanian flagged coal carrier stands accused of causing a massive 13,000 ha oil spill off Borneo this week.
Indonesia’s oil and gas director general Djoko Siswanto told reporters yesterday that a ship had dragged its anchor off the coast of the port city of Balikpapan, creating a 100 m long gash in a pipeline belonging to local energy giant Pertamina that led to the oil spill that covered more than 60 km of coastline.
Five fishermen died during the accident as the oil on the sea caught fire with the national government declaring a state of emergency.
“We suspect the pipe was dragged by the ship that caught fire,” Siswanto said, without identifying the vessel.
Cleanup operations are ongoing.
