Boskalis recently announced that, through its subsidiary SMIT Salvage, the company reached an agreement with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) for the removal of oil from the FSO Safer moored off the coast of Yemen Red Sea.
The project is part of a UN-coordinated operation to remove and transfer more than one million barrels of oil from a decaying tanker to a modern tanker, and the responsible disposal of the FSO Safer, he stressed Boskalis in a statement published on his site. and adds that the scope of the project for the company “consists of several phases”.
The initial on-site phase will focus on a thorough inspection of the vessel, its cargo and the creation of a safe working environment, Boskalis said in the statement. Once the ship and its cargo tanks are declared safe, a UN-purchased Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) will be attached, at which point the ship-to-ship oil pumping operation can begin, he said. add the company
The Safer’s tanks will be cleaned later and the waste water will also be transferred to the VLCC, Boskalis said in the statement. The company noted that once the Safer is declared clean and empty, it will be ready to be towed to a green scrapyard under UN responsibility.
“After a long planning period, our salvage experts are ready to get to work and remove the oil from the Safer,” Boskalis CEO Peter Berdowski said in a company statement.
“I would like to express my admiration and gratitude to the many UN member states supporting this operation, including the Netherlands, which played a leading role,” he added.
In the statement published on the Boskalis site, Liesje Schreinemacher, the Dutch Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, said that “the Netherlands has worked hard to mobilize funds for the operation and now a new step has been taken important”.
“It is good that the Dutch company Boskalis is playing a key role in the response. The Netherlands will continue to help the UN end this,” Schreinemacher added in the statement.
Buy VLCC
In a statement posted on its site in March, Euronav NV announced that it did signed an agreement with the UN to sell a VLCC as part of a wider salvage operation for FSO Safer. The company noted in the statement that it would provide a “suitable vessel” that would go into drydock for “necessary modifications” and regular maintenance before sailing to the FSO. The vessel will replace the FSO and will remain there, according to Euronav, which noted in the statement that it will help operate the vessel, even after the transfer of the oil, “for several months afterwards.”
In a statement posted on its site on April 6, the UN revealed that the Nautica VLCC had left Zhoushan, China, as part of Operation Safer. The ship is expected to arrive at the FSO in early May, according to the UN statement.
“The departure of the Nautica and its journey to the Red Sea is an important step in the complex operation to take oil from the Safer,” UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said in a UN statement.
“This moment marks the culmination of many months of preparation and coordination. It has involved many partners, including our sister UN agencies, a global community of funders, from governments and foundations to school classes, as well as international experts,” he added in the statement.
“We are in a race against time and I urge government leaders, corporate CEOs and anyone in a position to contribute to step forward and support us in sustaining this operation, which is rapidly reaching a critical stage, on the right track,” he said. he continued to notice.
David Gressly, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen, said: “The UN family, including UNDP, UNEP, IMO, OCHA, WFP, Member States, companies private sector and the public have participated in the plan coordinated by the UN.” .
“We have the best technical expertise available and political support from all parties. Donors have been generous. We just need the final funding this month to ensure success,” he added in the April 6 statement.
Spiral cost
In that statement, the UN admitted that the project has received “significant international support” but said the “spiraling cost of VLCCs, in a market affected by the war in Ukraine, and other factors, means that more funding is needed to complete the emergency phase.” of the plan”.
As of April 4, the UN had received firm commitments for $95 million, the organization said in the statement, adding that the total budget for the first phase is $129 million.
In a dedicated FSO Safer section of its website accessed on April 27, the UN noted that donors, private companies and members of the public have so far contributed $99.6 million to the plan .
“If the missing $29 million is raised quickly, the UN will be able to start the operation in the first half of this year,” the site said.
According to the FSO Safer section of the UN site, the organization has a crowdfunding goal related to the operation of $500,000. As of April 21, 51 percent of that goal had been reached, the site noted.
On 11 May 2022, the UN revealed that donors had pledged $33 million for FSO Operation Safer. The pledges were made at a pledging conference in The Hague, which was co-sponsored by the UN and the Netherlands, the statement said.
“We are grateful to the donors who pledged funding today on very short notice, and we look forward to receiving further commitments from those who have not yet pledged. When we have the funding, the work can begin,” Gressly said in a statement from the ‘UN in time.
The UN site highlights that donor countries to FSO Safer are the Netherlands, Germany, the US, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, Sweden, the European Union, Qatar, Norway, France, Kuwait, Canada, Finland, Japan, Denmark and Switzerland. , Luxembourg, Greece and Cyprus.
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