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The Hindu
18-06-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Oil extraction from MSC Elsa 3 to take more time due to monsoon: DGS
The Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) on Wednesday said that due to the prevailing peak monsoon conditions and associated operational risks, it will take more time to extract oil from the Liberian-flagged ship that sank off the Kerala coast last month. The DGS said the present weather conditions provide only a 'narrow and fragmented working window,' which is unsuitable for 'stable and safe' oil extraction efforts. 'Further delay would provide a more reliable window to safely conduct hot tapping and oil recovery,' it said. It further said that the vessel Nand Saarthi -- from where saturation diving operations for oil extraction were to be conducted -- remains at the Kochi port due to prevailing adverse sea conditions. 'Upon improvement in weather, it will sail to the wreck site. Oil recovery equipment on board Nand Saarthi is to be transferred to Canara Megh for the next phase. All accessories and gases remain available and are being held for deployment once the new contractor takes over,' the DGS said. It further said that the SEAMAC III vessel, from which the divers were working to plug the oil leaks in the sunken ship, has been demobilised and was proceeding to Mumbai as all the leaks have been plugged. The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has conducted aerial sorties using Dornier aircraft equipped with Pollution Surveillance Systems (PSS) to look for any oil slicks, the DGS said. 'No oil slick has been observed approximately 60 nautical miles from the wreck site. Additional sorties are planned to continue monitoring the situation,' it added. Besides that, satellite imagery from the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) is awaited to confirm whether there were any shoreline and offshore oil traces. Therefore, at present, the salvage operations are in a standby/caretaking phase till the new contractor takes over, it said. Regarding the clean-up operations, the DGS said that handling and disposal of plastic nurdles, which floated to the shores from the ship remains a concern. 'The Customs authorities have requested treating the recovered nurdles as bonded cargo. Approximately 65-75 tonnes is now stored shore-side, awaiting a final disposal decision,' the DGS said.
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Business Standard
18-06-2025
- General
- Business Standard
Oil extraction from MSC Elsa 3 to take more time due to monsoon season: DGS
The Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) on Wednesday said that due to the prevailing peak monsoon conditions and associated operational risks, it will take more time to extract oil from the Liberian-flagged ship that sank off the Kerala coast last month. The DGS said that the present weather conditions provide only a "narrow and fragmented working window", which is unsuitable for "stable and safe" oil extraction efforts. "Further delay would provide a more reliable window to safely conduct hot tapping and oil recovery," it said. It further said that the vessel Nand Saarthi -- from where saturation diving operations for oil extraction were to be conducted -- remains at Kochi port due to prevailing adverse sea conditions. "Upon improvement in weather, it will sail to the wreck site. Oil recovery equipment onboard Nand Saarthi is to be transferred to Canara Megh for the next phase. All accessories and gases remain available and are being held for deployment once the new contractor takes over," the DGS said. It further said that the SEAMAC III vessel, from which the divers were working to plug the oil leaks in the sunken ship, has been demobilised and was proceeding to Mumbai as all the leaks have been plugged. The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has conducted aerial sorties using Dornier aircraft equipped with Pollution Surveillance Systems (PSS) to look for any oil slicks, the DGS said. "No oil slick has been observed approximately 60 nautical miles from the wreck site. Additional sorties are planned to continue monitoring the situation," it added. Besides that, satellite imagery from the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) is awaited to confirm whether there were any shoreline and offshore oil traces. Therefore, presently, the salvage operations are in a standby/caretaking phase till the new contractor takes over, it said. Regarding the clean-up operations, the DGS said that handling and disposal of plastic nurdles, which floated to the shores from the ship remains a concern. "The customs authorities have requested treating the recovered nurdles as bonded cargo. Approximately 65-75 tons are now stored shore-side, awaiting a final disposal decision," the DGS said. It further said that there was a need for a standard operating procedure for handling and disposal of the nurdles, that balances environmental safety with regulatory compliance. It said that according to the ITOPF the recovered nurdles include varying polymer grades, posing challenges to standardised disposal methods. "Onshore, the Marine Emergency Response Centre (MERC) has continued container recovery activities at Kollam, focusing on submerged containers using divers. "Beach cleanup operations continue across Thiruvananthapuram with approximately 160 volunteers deployed," the DGS said. However, the intermittent rains have slowed down the clean-up work on some days, it added. "The air sorties and continuous coastal vigilance, in combination with onshore cleanup efforts, have been instrumental in monitoring post-wreck environmental impacts," it said. The Liberian-flagged MSC Elsa 3 had sunk approximately 14.6 nautical miles off Thottappally coast in Kerala's Alappuzha district between May 24-25. The vessel went down carrying 640 containers, including 13 with hazardous cargo and 12 containing calcium carbide. It was also loaded with 84.44 metric tonnes of diesel and 367.1 metric tonnes of furnace oil, according to the Ministry of Defence. The vessel sank with oil still trapped inside. On June 11, Kerala Police registered a case of rash navigation against the ship's owner, master, and crew. An FIR registered by the Fort Kochi Coastal Police Station states that the owners, master, and crew handled the vessel--which was carrying combustible and explosive cargo dangerous to human life and property--in a negligent manner, leading to its sinking. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Indian Express
10-06-2025
- General
- New Indian Express
Underwater salvage operation of MSC Elsa 3 begins; cleanup, oil removal by July 3
KOCHI: The underwater salvage operation of the sunken container vessel MSC Elsa 3 commenced on Monday off the Kerala coast, with the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS), Mumbai, supervising the multi-agency effort. The operation aims to cap fuel oil tank openings and remove oil from the sunken Liberian-flagged ship by July 3, subject to weather conditions. The container ship, which sank 13 nautical miles off Kochi on May 25, has triggered a coordinated response involving offshore and onshore agencies, including the Indian Coast Guard, state authorities, and international salvage firms. The Diving Support Vessel SEAMEC III has been deployed to the site, equipped with decompression systems, Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV), and diving gear. A 12-member dive team is conducting air diving operations to locate and cap openings of the fuel oil tanks to prevent further seepage. 'The second stage of the operation, which involves oil removal via hot tapping, is scheduled to be completed by July 3,' a statement by DGS, Mumbai, said. Offshore support vessels Nand Saarthi and Offshore Warrior, engaged by T&T Salvage Singapore, remain at sea dispersing light oil sheen. The Indian Coast Guard's pollution response vessel ICGS Samudra Prahari continues to monitor the area. The Emergency Towing Vessel Water Lily has completed an initial multi-beam seabed survey, with data analysis currently under way.
Time of India
09-06-2025
- General
- Time of India
Sunken vessel: Diving support vessel to commence underwater salvage
Kochi: The directorate general of shipping stated on Monday that a diving support vessel, SEAMEC III, would commence underwater salvage and diving operations in response to the sinking of the Liberian-flagged vessel, MSC ELSA 3. The statement mentioned that the owners and salvors mobilised DSV SEAMEC III. Twelve divers were arranged to carry out air diving operations. Remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and diving equipment, including decompression systems, were loaded onboard the ship to ensure it was fully operational and ready to undertake diving near the sunken vessel. In the first stage, the divers would identify the openings of fuel oil tanks and carry out capping to prevent any oil seepage from the vessel. According to the plan given by the salvors, the removal of oil from the fuel oil tanks by hot tapping would be done during the second stage, scheduled to complete by July 3, subject to weather conditions. The statement added that representatives of the P & I Club of the vessel and the ship owners met with the state govt and agreed to settle claims in accordance with the law. The statutory investigation under the Merchant Shipping Act, leading to the identification of the causal factor of the incident, was also being undertaken by the Mercantile Marine Department, Kochi, said the DGS statement. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo Offshore support vessels Nand Saarthi and Offshore Warrior remained deployed (engaged by TT Salvage, Singapore) and continuously engaged in the removal and dispersal of light oil sheen noticed at the surface. The Indian Coast Guard pollution response vessel, ICGS Samudra Prahari, continued to remain deployed near the sunken vessel for monitoring the situation and dealing with any eventuality. The emergency towing vessel (ETV) Water Lily conducted a multibeam seabed survey since June 5 at the datum location. The initial phase of the survey was completed, and data was currently under analysis, with the report expected shortly. Container salvage efforts by Marine Emergency Response Services (MERC, Gujarat) along the shoreline saw continued progress. The MSC and the Protection and Indemnity (P&I) Club insurer of the vessel appointed the firm MERC for the removal of containers and other shoreline clean-up activities. To date, a total of 51 containers out of 61 washed ashore were successfully recovered and delivered to port, while the remaining 10 were currently under active salvage. These included several challenging and partially submerged containers being addressed by dedicated response teams in coordination with the local administration. It was emphasised that none of the 61 containers washed ashore contained any hazardous substances.
