Navy extracts fuel from vessel stranded whilst transporting Vale’s iron ore

On March 11, the Navy initiated maneuvers to remove fuel oil from the Stellar Banner Ship, which transported around 295,000 tons of Vale’s iron ore and was destined for China when it ran aground last month off the coast of Maranhão after suffering a malfunction. The vessel, which is owned and operated by South Korea’s Polaris Shipping, contains about 3,700 tons of nautical fuel (bunker) and is about 100 kilometers off the coast of Maranhão.

“The method for removing fuel oil from the Stellar Banner Ship consists of a reverse supply operation with the aid of a receiving vessel,” explained the Navy. In this way, a vessel will be positioned on the side of the Stellar Banner and connected to the vessel to receive the oil. After all safety checks, pumping will start for the receiving vessels. For greater safety, a helicopter and an airplane will monitor the operation, with the support of specialists in environmental contingency. In addition, the Navy reiterated that it has a contingency plan in case of a possible fuel leak and that, to date, “no traces of oil have been observed at sea”.

255 Navy personnel are employed in the operation, in addition to other vessels and various types of equipment, including tugs and a drone with thermal camera. The Navy said that the objective is to “solve what happened as soon as possible”, without mentioning deadlines for the completion of the maneuvers to remove fuel from the ship.

Source: Reuters

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