Oman is facing a potential environmental threat after the Russian-linked dark fleet tanker Supermax Caroline Bezengi (IMO 9224439) began breaking apart while grounded on rocks near Jazirat Al Qibliyyah, part of the Hallaniyat Islands off Dhofar. The vessel’s crew had reported an onboard explosion on June 8, with footage reviewed by Reuters appearing to show leaks from the tanker.
Built in 2001, the 274-meter (899-foot) vessel is 159,168 dwt. Operating as the Caroline Bezengi since 2023, it is reporting a Cameroon flag. The flag, however, appears to be false, as the ship was one of the vessels forced out of the Cameroon registry in June as part of the crackdown on sanctioned tankers.
The tanker, which is sanctioned by the EU, UK and US (OFAC) and has a past association with Russian state shipowner Sovcomflot, had loaded at Novorossiysk and was en route for India. The ship appears to have been abandoned by its crew about three days later. It is not known where the crew is now, but post-evacuation officers from the ship have been assisting the Omani authorities in assessing the condition of the stranded vessel.
The position of the ship is particularly difficult, and is exposed to heavy seas normal in this monsoon season. While the ship appears to be stuck on the rocks forward, there are rocks off the port side which would catch the ship if it shifted, and also exposed rocks 500 yards off the stern of the ship.
The Omani maritime authorities conducted an onboard survey of the ship on July 12, and noted considerable deterioration in comparison with an aerial survey conducted a week previously. The tanker was fully laden save for one tank – this empty tank being the only one apparently not breached, with the remaining tanks all full showing signs of seawater contamination. The tanker is sinking deeper into the water and its list is increasing. Most worryingly, there is crude leakage into ballast and the double hull spacing, the fumes from which is potentially explosive.
Predictably, the Omani authorities have not had responses from the listed single-ship owner and manager, recorded as Rentoor Shipmanagement, based in Huangpu Qu, Shanghai, whose authority would normally be needed before salvage could commence. In the meantime, the Omani authorities have commissioned an independent evaluation from a leading salvage firm, which has confirmed the dangerous and deteriorating condition of the ship. The survey also identified a feasible plan for off-loading the Caroline Bezengi’s cargo, via a 1000-yard pipeline to a receiving tanker anchored in safer waters in the lee of the island, and for refloating the tanker as it was lightened – but all with the risks of on-board explosions and the ship breaking up further as the operation progresses.
A decision has not apparently yet been made, frozen by the legal difficulties, but unless salvage begins immediately it appears that the Caroline Bezengi will break up and spill its cargo, devastating the Hallaniyat Islands Marine Buffer Zone to which access is normally strictly controlled so as to preserve endangered humpback whale, seabird, and turtle populations. The contamination would also likely contaminate large stretches of the Dhofar coastline.
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