France is to send a remotely operated vehicle to inspect the wreck of the sunken Grande America to assess whether it represents a hazard to the environment and requires removal.
The Grimaldi-controlled, 57,000-gt ship (built 1997) sank 330 kilometres off La Rochelle, western France, last week after a cargo-related fire and is lying at a depth of more than 4,000 metres in the Atlantic.
There was an estimated 2,200 tonnes of heavy fuel oil onboard contained in 12 separate tanks.
An oil spill has been spotted on the surface of the sea over a 10-kilometre area near where the vessel sank. France has brought in specialist equipment to contain the spill.
Rotterdam salvage company Ardent has been appointed as the lead salvage company.
The International Tanker Owners Oil Pollution Federation is also on the scene to independently assess the pollution.
The ROV operation has been ordered by France to assess if any fuel oil is still onboard.
France is a signatory to the Nairobi Wreck Removal Convention and is bound to remove the wreck if it represents a hazard to shipping or the environment.
At such a depth, the wreck is unlikely to represent a hazard to shipping but France could assess that it is a threat to the environment if it still has fuel onboard that could leak out in the future.
However, experts suggest that it is most likely the fuel tanks were breached by sea pressure when the vessel sank and almost all the oil is likely to have dissipated already in the heavy Atlantic seas.
Computer modelling is understood to show that a strong easterly wind at the time of the sinking will have taken the fuel oil away from French shores and out into the ocean.
In the unlikely event France assesses that there is still fuel onboard the ro-ro cargoship and it represents a threat to the environment, it could either attempt to remove the fuel or seal the vessel to ensure no further leaks.
Cargo oil was removed from the tankers Prestige and Erika after they sank in the Atlantic off Europe nearly two decades ago.
Another option would be to remove the wreck. However, a wreck removal at such depths has never been attempted before.
The Grande America appears to have sunk after it suffered a list caused by water accumulating onboard as the result of fire-fighting efforts. All 27 crew successfully abandoned ship and were rescued.
Insurers are assisting France in assessing the wreck and in pollution containment.
The vessel's hull is covered by the Norwegian Hull Club, Gard and others. Protection and indemnity cover is with North P&I Club.
