The Greek-controlled suezmax tanker that spilled oil in the Yellow Sea following a collision last month has arrived at the Chinese port of Weihai awaiting repairs, its technical manager confirmed.
Goodwood Ship Management told TradeWinds that the 150,000-dwt A Symphony (built 2001) has undergone tank cleaning operations and is anchored at CUD (Weihai) Shipyard.
The vessel was anchored with 1m barrels of bitumen bound for Qingdao when it was struck by the 35,200-dwt bulker Sea Justice (built 2005) on 27 April.
No injuries to the crew were reported, but the tanker suffered a breach of its cargo and ballast tanks.
Chinese authorities reported “a small amount of oil spill at sea” from the suezmax and launched clean-up operations following the incident.
A lightering operation for the cargo aboard the A Symphony was completed in early May before the ship sailed to Weihai under its own power.
“An initial analysis found the seafarers on duty failed to keep a lookout in the mist when the collision occurred,” Shandong Maritime Safety Administration said via its Weibo account. It did not mention to which ship the crew belonged.
The costs arising from the collision are expected to be shared among involved parties in accordance with the China Maritime Safety Administration’s investigation results.
Goodwood said the clean-up costs fall within the scope of the International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage.
The A Symphony is commercially controlled by Greece’s NGM Energy and has protection and indemnity cover with North P&I Club.
North P&I Club said the cleaning operations are ongoing and expected to last for some weeks.
“As in any casualty the origin and type of the cargo together with the parties involved are subject to sanctions checks,” the insurer said. “At this time, no link been found to exist with a country subject to any national or supranational oil embargo.”
In April, TradeWinds reported NGM agreed to sell the tanker to Asian interests for almost $14.8m.
It is uncertain whether the sale will be affected by the incident. TradeWinds has approached the Moundreas family-controlled company for comment.
