It’s been so long since there was any cause for optimism in Yemen that you might want to cross your fingers before you read on: The likelihood of an environmental catastrophe in the Red Sea, one of the country’s many calamities, is abating.
The United Nations Development Programme has purchased a ship to take 1.1 million barrels of crude oil that has been sitting in a decrepit supertanker, SFO Safer, off the port of Ras Isa in Yemen’s west coast. It has contracted SMIT Salvage BV, a Dutch firm specializing in marine salvage, to extract the oil and remove the Safer to safety.
The replacement vessel is currently in drydock in China, being fitted for its new purpose as a floating oil storage vessel. It is expected to arrive in the Red Sea next month. Depending on the weather and the condition of the Safer, the siphoning operation could take several weeks. Thereafter, a new mooring system will need to be installed for the replacement vessel. “We must accept that this is a very challenging and complex operation,” said Achim Steiner, administrator of the UNDP.
