The new challenge to oil transfer from Yemen tanker: cost
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The rising cost of purchasing or leasing a vessel that can hold more than 1 million barrels of crude oil now in a rusting old tanker off the coast of war-torn Yemen is the latest obstacle to resolving the grave threat of massive environmental damage from a possible oil spill or explosion, the U.N. said Tuesday.
U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said the availability of very large crude oil tankers “has decreased in the past six months, basically due to events having to do with the war in Ukraine.”
He explained that the U.N. was now preparing to transfer oil from FSO Safer. However, the cost to buy a large crude oil carrier has risen by about 50% compared with the original U.N. plan. And the leasing cost has also increased.
“So we have some additional expenses, and it’s a little bit harder finding the right ships, but we’re proceeding with the work,” Haq said.
He stated that donors have generously donated more than $84 Million of the required funding, and that additional funding from private sector sources is expected to be available soon.
Haq claimed that over $73 million in pledges was disbursed, and that the essential preparatory work has already begun.
“All of the technical expertise is in place to undertake the procurement for the complex operation,” he said. “This includes a marine management consultancy firm, maritime legal firm, insurance and ship brokers and oil spill experts” as well as contracting a salvage company that will carry out the emergency operation which is at an advanced stage.
“However, the key challenge at present is procurement of a very large crude carrier,” Haq said. “The U.N. cannot begin the emergency operation until it is certain that a safe crude carrier will be in place to take on the oil.”
He said the U.N. is working with a maritime broker and other partners “to find a workable solution and remains confident the work can begin in the coming months.”
The United Nations and Yemen’s Houthi rebels signed a memorandum of understanding last March aimed at resolving the environmental threat posed by the Safer tanker to the Red Sea.
The Safer Tanker is a Japanese-made ship built in the 1970s. It was then sold to Yemen in the 1980s to store as much as 3 million barrels oil exported from the fields of Marib. This province is in eastern Yemen, which is currently the site of limited fighting. The ship measures 360m (1,181ft) in length and has 34 storage tanks.
Yemen’s devastating conflict began in 2014, when the Iranian-backed Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, and much of northern Yemen and forced the government into exile. In 2015, a coalition led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates intervened to restore the internationally recognised government to power.
The April 2022 U.N.-backed truce was in effect and offered hope for a longer pause in fighting. However, it was only six months old when it expired on Oct. 2. U.N. special envoy Hans Grundberg told the Security Council Monday that despite the end of the truce, “the overall military situation in Yemen has remained stable” with no major escalation or changes to front lines despite some limited military activity.
The Houthis control Yemen’s western Red Sea ports, including Ras Issa, just 6 kilometers (about 4 miles) from where the Safer is moored.
The Associated Press found internal documents that revealed seawater had entered the tanker’s engine compartment. This caused pipe damage and increased the possibility of sinking. Experts stated that maintenance was impossible because of the irreversible damage to the ship.
The United Nations, the United States and other governments, as well as Greenpeace and other international organizations have warned for years that a major oil spill — or explosion — could disrupt global commercial shipping through the vital Bab el Mendez and Suez Canal routes, causing untold damage to the global economy.