Safer (ship)
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The Safer ( Arabic صافر, DMG Ṣāfir ) is a ULCC (Ultra Large Crude Carrier) tanker that was last used as an oil transfer terminal. Due to its function as a Floating Storage and Offloading Terminal (FSO), the ship is also referred to as an FSO Safer .
The ship lies on a sea position off the Yemeni coast and was manned in 2015 by the Houthi War Party with 1.1 million barrels of crude oil (160 million liters) on board in an act of piracy . In July 2020, UNEP warned of an environmental, economic and humanitarian disaster in the Red Sea due to leaks and possible explosions of the oil tanker if it were not serviced. The ecosystems and thus the livelihoods of people on the coast would be destroyed for decades.
history
The tanker was built under hull number 4440 as one of several identical ships at the Hitachi Zosen shipyard in Ariake in Japan . It was completed on May 1, 1976 and delivered to Esso Tankers Inc. The tanker, built as a single-hull ship as was customary at the time, was launched as Esso Japan under the Liberian flag .
In 1986 the ship was sold to the Yemen Exploration & Production Co. and renamed Safer . It was converted into a floating storage and offloading terminal. It has been off the coast of Yemen in the Red Sea since 1987. It served as a storage facility for crude oil to be exported and acted as the Ras Isa Marine Terminal for loading onto other ships. For this purpose, the ship is connected to the Ma'rib oil field by a pipeline around 430 km long . The pipeline can transport between 200,000 and 400,000 barrels of crude oil per day. The Safer is run by the Safer Exploration and Production Co. (Sepoc).
At the beginning of the 21st century there were plans to replace the FSO with a new terminal with storage tanks on the coast.
In March 2015, Houthi rebels took control of the area and occupied the oil-laden ship. Since then, there has been no more transshipment at the terminal. Since the ship was subsequently no longer serviced, the risk of an accident increases, be it due to leaks or the formation of explosive gas mixtures in the cargo tanks. Access to the ship by UN inspectors to assess the situation was repeatedly denied by the rebels, as was the pumping out of the oil on board or the removal of the ship.
Internal UN documents from 2020 show that there are already leaks on the ship and that seawater has entered the tanker's engine room. With pumps also damaged, the risk of the ship sinking increased, which could cause an oil spill. An oil spill would put additional strain on people's lives in Yemen. Fish stocks, bird populations, coral reefs and seawater desalination plants would be destroyed over the years.
According to plans by the United Nations, the oil on board should be pumped out as quickly as possible. If the oil is sold, which is valued at $ 40 million, the money could be shared between the rebels and the Yemeni government. The Houthi rebels are said to have insisted on being entitled to the oil and its sale alone.
Technical specifications
The tanker was powered by a steam turbine with an output of 33,570 kW.
The Safer has 34 tanks. The tank capacity is around 492,860 m³. In the midship area there are the manifolds on both sides . There is a loading boom for each hose takeover .
The tanker is single-walled; this means there is an increased risk of oil leaking if the tanks leak.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b UN fear environmental catastrophe caused by oil tankers. Time, July 16, 2020, accessed July 24, 2020 .
- ↑ a b c Esso Japan. In: Auke Visser's International Esso Tankers site. Retrieved July 24, 2020 .
- ↑ a b Is an aging oil tanker threatening an environmental disaster off the coast of Yemen? Conflict and Environment Observatory, May 15, 2018, accessed July 24, 2020 .
- ↑ a b Loading port for Marib Light is Ras Isa Marine Terminal. Crude Oil Marketing Technical Committee, accessed July 24, 2020 .
- ↑ Yemen invites bids for Ras Issa terminal. MEED Media, September 25, 2009, accessed on July 25, 2020 .
- ^ Yemeni oil tanker 'threatens environmental disaster four times worse than Exxon Valdez'. PortandTerminal.com, July 24, 2019, accessed July 25, 2020 .
- ↑ a b Civil war in Yemen: Millions of people threatened by oil spill. Der Spiegel, July 16, 2020, accessed on July 24, 2020 .
- ^ A b Rick Gladstone: As if Yemen Needed More Woes, a Decrepit Oil Tanker Threatens Disaster. The New York Times, July 17, 2020, accessed July 24, 2020 .
Coordinates: 15 ° 4 ′ 12 ″ N , 42 ° 21 ′ 36 ″ E