Boskalis’ SMIT Salvage has been tasked to remove oil from the decaying floating storage and offloading unit (FSO) Safer moored off Yemen’s Red Sea coast.
moored off Yemen’s Red Sea coast.The single-hulled oil tanker, built in 1976 and converted in 1987, is believed to hold 1.14m barrels of light crude oil. Due to the crisis in Yemen, the FSO has not been maintained since 2015, and it has degraded to the point where it could explode or break apart, which would have severe environmental and humanitarian consequences for the region.
The UN Development Programme (UNDP) signed an agreement with Euronav in March, paying $55m for a VLCC as part of an UN-coordinated operation to remove the oil from the ageing vessel.
The 2013-built multipurpose support vessel Ndeavor has been earmarked for the oil removal project and will depart from Rotterdam on Friday stocked with all the necessary salvage equipment. The oil will be transferred to the 2008-built Nautica expected to arrive in early May. The operation, including the tank cleaning, is expected to be completed within two months, after which the FSO will be sent for green scrapping.
Liesje Schreinemacher, Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, said: “An enormous oil disaster is looming, which could have serious humanitarian, environmental and economic implications. But we now have a chance to prevent that disaster. The Netherlands has worked hard to mobilise funds for the operation and now a major new step has been taken.”
The UN has raised around $100m for the emergency phase of the project and requires a further $29m to complete the operation.
