ISU reveals details of world salvage activities in 2023

A vessel grounding can lead to total loss in an environmentally sensitive area. like the 8,461gt general cargo vessel Xin Hai Zhou 2, which lost power and hit a coral reef in a national park off Ishigaki Island, Okinawa, Japan in January.

Minimising environmental damage was a priority and Tokyo-based Nippon Salvage was engaged by the vessel’s P&I club to remove its bunkers. The salvor’s tug Koyo Maru was dispatched with a salvage team and equipment, and with a locally sourced barge completed the removal of pollutants from the stranded vessel.

Later, photos suggested Xin Hai Zhou 2 had ‘hogged’ and broken its back and Nippon was contracted to remove the wreck. At the time of writing the operation was reported as continuing “with care to prevent further damage to the environment”.

In another March incident, professional experts worked alongside nearly 1,000 volunteers to remove pollutants in Oriental Mindoro, Semirara and Liwagao in the Philippines after the sinking of the tanker Princess Empress.

ISU Member Harbor Star Shipping Services and French pollution experts Le Floc De Pollution were tasked, eventually collecting 576m³ of solid contaminated waste from the shoreline. The response was conducted in coordination and compliance with the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation to prioritise the safety of the volunteers and minimise further environmental damage.

“Their tireless efforts and dedication to restoring their beloved shoreline were instrumental in achieving the remarkable outcome,” said Harbor Star. “These selfless individuals showcased the true spirit of community and environmental stewardship.”

Turkey’s Detek Offshore Technology demonstrated the complexities involved in resolving ship grounding incidents after the general cargo vessel Moraz ran aground on rocks during a storm in Yazici Port, Iskenderun, Turkey, also in March.

The vessel’s engine room plating was damaged, resulting in water ingress up to main engine level and its rudder embedded in the stoney bottom. Following a diving inspection by Detek, work involved preventing water ingress to the steering compartment with sheet metal sealing and welding work around the rudder shaft.

Damaged shell plating was cut out and steel plates installed using underwater welding equipment, ensuring water tightness in the engineroom. Following dewatering of the compartment and after two months of work, Moraz was refloated and towed away by tugs.

Aground in South America

The Parana River in Argentina is an important waterway for transporting iron ore in pusher tug/barge combinations. Shallow waters accompanied by strong currents demand precise navigational skills and when the barge Imperial 318, laden with 3,000t of iron ore, grounded on the river bank, American salvage and diving company Raúl A. Negro was engaged to assist the vessel.

Offloading cargo can be part of the refloating process but on this occasion the operation, including “complex underwater repairs” under NKK class standards, restored the barge’s buoyancy without cargo removal. An anchor spread was deployed and following calculations and fabrication of structures and with assistance from the pontoon Grua 255 and tugs, the barge was successfully refloated.

Resolve Marine’s recent activities have included responding to incidents in South Africa, Banda Sea Indonesia and in America.

The US-based salvor was engaged by owners and underwriters for a righting operation when the sailing vessel Europa partially rolled over while being transported for launch in Cape Town, South Africa. Using techniques common with marine-based operations, a modular portal frame and strand jacks were used to right the vessel and move it laterally back into alignment and onto the track system.

A salvage team and equipment was mobilised from Resolve’s Singapore base after a bulk carrier laden with bauxite struck an uncharted rock in the Banda Sea, breaching several ballast tanks. Temporary repairs and partial lightering of the cargo followed before the vessel sailed for a repair yard.

Offshore Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Resolve was tasked with removal of a sunken pusher tug. Its salvage barge RMG 1000 mobilised to the site and the tug was refloated and redelivered less than a week after arriving on site.