A Libyan crude oil tanker spilled some of its cargo off the coast of Singapore after colliding with another ship on Friday morning, adding to the North African country’s challenges as it contends with escalating violence and a collapsing domestic oil industry.
The Alyarmouk, owned and registered in Libya, collided with the Sinar Kapuas, a dry-bulk ship, in waters northeast of Pedra Branca island, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore said on its Web site yesterday.
One of the Alyarmouk’s tanks was damaged in the incident, resulting in the leak, it said.
Worsening violence already halted two of Libya’s three largest ports last month and meant the nation with Africa’s biggest reserves pumped 450,000 barrels per day, less than one third of the volume produced at its peak, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Output might deteriorate further this month after Muslim militants set fire to six storage tanks at the port of Es Sider, the biggest export terminal. Those blazes have now been extinguished, Libya’s National Oil Corp said yesterday.
The Alyarmouk is owned by Libya’s General National Maritime Transport Co, according to the state-owned company’s Web site.
A person who yesterday answered the phone at the company’s offices in Tripoli said nobody was available to comment.
He declined to give his name. One e-mail and a text message were not immediately returned.
About 4,500 tonnes of crude oil were spilled, according to the port authority.
Two oil-response companies dispatched four vessels equipped with dispersants, oil booms and skimmers which are at the site of the spill that might affect northern parts the Indonesian island of Bintan, it said.
No injuries have been reported and maritime traffic has not been affected, the port authority said. Both vessels are anchored and in a stable condition.
The Alyarmouk was en route from Malaysia to China, while the Sinar Kapuas was destined for Singapore from Hong Kong, according to the port authority.
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