The failure of the operation to tow a drifting Russian ship “out of control”. Major pollution risk in the Mediterranean
The Libyan authorities announced on Thursday the failure of the towing operation of the Russian methane tanker “Arctic Metagaz”, which is drifting in the Mediterranean Sea after being hit by drones at the beginning of March, an attack that seems to have been carried out by Ukraine, AFP and EFE agencies report, quoted by Agerpres.
The Libyan Ports and Maritime Transport Authority said the towing failed due to difficult weather conditions, with wind gusts of 40-50 knots and waves five meters high. The tanker is currently “out of control”, this authority indicated, warning ships in the area to maintain a minimum safety distance of ten nautical miles.
The Libyan National Oil Company (NOC) had initially planned, in collaboration with the Italian group Eni, to tow the ship to a Libyan port. But fears of an ecological disaster led the Libyan authorities to try towing the methane tanker away from Libya, to reduce the risk of pollution of the coastal area.
According to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at the time of the ship's abandonment, it had a load of 450 tons of fuel oil, 250 tons of diesel, as well as a large amount of liquefied natural gas (LNG). The crew members could be saved.
Also according to Russia, the ship “Arctic Metagaz” was attacked by at least two aerial drones and three naval drones launched from the coast of Libya in a special operation carried out by the secret services of Ukraine, a country that did not comment on the attack.
