Wagenborg Shipping has confirmed that a ballast tank aboard one of its ships has been ruptured.
The 3,250-dwt Priscilla (built 2009) remains in a “stable condition but hard aground” on the Pentland Skerries off Scotland's northern coast with six crew members onboard, UK’s Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) said.
The cause for the 17 July grounding is still under investigation, said Jacko Boorsma, Wagenborg's director of sales and purchase.
The Bureau Veritas-classed vessel was last inspected in 2014.
“No bunkers or lubes have leaked,” he said, adding that no pollution has been reported.
“An assessment has been made so far that only one ballast tank has been punctured,” Boorsma told TradeWinds. “There is no damage to the machinery on board.”
The multipurpose ship is carrying 52 tonnes of marine gas oil, four tonnes of heavy fuel oil, two tonnes of lubricating oil, and has a cargo of 3,300 tonnes of bulk fertiliser in one cargo hold.
The six-person crew remain safe and well onboard, the MCA said.
Refloating operations are due to begin with Ardent and Multraship joining Wagenborg.
The exclusion zone has been widened from 500 metres to 1,000 metres to account for increased activity once the salvage begins.
The salvors will remove 35 tonnes of the marine gas oil as a precautionary measure, with the remainder left for ship services, the MCA said.
The heavy fuel oil, which is solidified and contained in a tank with no heating, will not be removed. The lubricating oil will remain onboard for ship services.
