Indonesian Navy Informs Stranded Oil Tanker To Be Freed In A Month
Key Indonesian authorities mentioned on Monday that it could take nearly a month to rescue a crude oil supertanker stuck in its territorial waters. At the same time, the US placed sanctions on it for its alleged links to Hezbollah and a branch of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards.
The Indonesian navy has been striving to free the Djibouti-registered vessel dubbed the Young Yong, which reportedly ran aground off the Riau Islands of Indonesia on 26 October.
Last week, the US placed some sanctions against an international network involved in oil smuggling. It mentioned that it supports Hezbollah and Iran’s Quds Force that, targets dozens of individuals, firms, and even tankers as Washington sought to put pressure on Tehran. The Young Yong was one of the sanctioned vessels.
Relevant US embassy officials based in Jakarta and Singapore did not respond to requests for comment immediately.
Capable of transporting two million barrels of crude oil, the vessel is nearly complete, per shipping data provided by Refinitiv Eikon. Besides, the Indonesian Navy’s Rear Admiral Arsyad Abdullah of the Indonesian navy mentioned that an operation was in progress to free the tanker.
He explained that they needed to be cautious with the procedure as there are (natural gas) pipes, and it could take up to a month, he informed Reuters.
The ship ran aground in the Singapore Strait near a crucial pipeline which supplies natural gas to Singapore. No leaks or injuries have been reported. It loads crude oil bound for China from floating storage at the Singapore-Malaysia Straits. Technology Bright International Co Ltd reportedly owns the ship, and its manager is East Wind Ship Management Ltd.
However, these firms could not be contacted for comment.
References: Euronews, straitstimes
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