A Peruvian trade group representing the country’s shipping agents urged the government to consider the impact on marine fuelling after suspending tanker operations at a refinery at the centre of an oil spill investigation.

The Association of Peruvian Maritime Agents (APAM) said that officials need to provide a contingency plan for bunkering at the port of Callao, the Lima area port that is the country’s largest.

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The statement came a day after officials ordered officials to shut down loadings and unloadings at Repsol’s La Pampilla refinery in response to an oil spill on 15 January that took place when waves from a massive underwater volcanic eruption struck its terminal while a tanker was offloading crude.

“We ask the Executive Branch to think when taking decisions,” the group said in a statement provided to several media organisations. “If there is no adequate contingency plan that covers 60% of the bunkering market for ships, we ask that this measure, which we believe was hasty, is rescinded.

“We are in agreement with requiring companies and state agencies to implement stem safety to avoid damage like what happened on 15 January. However, when measures are adopted without evaluating collateral damage, we will always be critical.”

As TradeWinds reported on Monday, Peruvian officials have targeted their ire at Repsol, the Spanish oil giant, by securing a court order barring four executives from leaving the country during the investigation.

Prosecutors have also garnered court approval to seize Fratelli d’Amico Armatori’s 158,319-dwt suezmax tanker Mare Doricum (built 2009), which was unloading at the time of the incident, during the probe.

“It is important to note that no accusations have been raised against any member of crew,” the company said on Tuesday.

Cargo offloaded from tanker

The Italian shipowner, which has said that the spill came from the refinery’s underwater pipeline, said that the remaining cargo was offloaded from the vessel via ship-to-ship transfer on Saturday.

Repsol said on Tuesday that Peruvian environment minister Ruben Ramirez visited its emergency control centre at La Pampilla.

“During his visit, the minister was able to see the progress in the sea and coastline reported by the company,” Repsol said.

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