VIKRAM NAYAK
VASCO
When the unmanned tanker ‘MT Nu Shi Nalini’ arrived in Goa for seven-day operations to offload 2,500 metric tonnes of naphtha, an unexpected sequence of events led the tanker to get delayed for three months and the vessel eventually ran aground off Dona Paula on Friday afternoon.
Narrating the entire sequence of events to The Goan, sources from the company, shipping agents and MPT sought to explain how and why the tanker had reached Goa in the first place.
According to these sources, the ‘MT Nu Shi Nalini’, managed by Arya Ship Charterers Pvt Ltd, Mumbai, was carrying Naphtha cargo shipped by BYCO Petroleum Pakistan from Karachi Port to Budge Budge Port in West Bengal for a company ‘Swiss Singapore Overseas Enterprises’
However as the ship was sailing 14.5 miles nautical miles off the Kochi port, there was a fire in the engine room of the ship, apparently due to an internal explosion caused by naphtha leakage on June 13, 2018. A helicopter and INS Kalpeni were pressed into service to evacuate the crew and a trainee engineer lost his life in the incident.
The ship then remained in the area for about 11 months after the naphtha leakage was contained in the tanks, but the cargo was abandoned by the Swiss Singapore company on grounds that the Naphtha had got mixed with engine room sludge and other water contents, leading to contamination of cargo.
This apparently led to differences between the owners and charters, while the crew abandoned the ship after their salaries were not paid.
Amidst Cyclone Gaja, there was pressure and protests in Kerala over the presence of the unmanned ship with naphtha and a failed engine, leading to demands that the vessel be towed away to a safer location.
Due to some financial issues, the bank, which the ship was mortgaged to, took control of the ship and wanted to recover the money by selling off the ship after repairs.
There were many prospective buyers, but they wanted the inflammable cargo out of the ship and a Ship-to-Ship (STS) transfer was planned in Kerala, but operations failed on payment issues.
The Coast Guard then insisted that the vessel be moved away from Kochi and the bank’s representative started looking for alternative ports where the ship
could find a berth and transfer its cargo.The MPT, which was already struggling for business, had idle berths and was then contacted. After approval of the DG Shipping, the unmanned ship entered MPT on or about July 15, with the assistance of two tugs from Kochi and was berthed at the cruise berth.
Representatives of the owner and bank had contacted the port to arrange for recyclers to clear the contaminated cargo, and, accordingly, the MPT made all arrangements and assured the owners of the ship that transfer of cargo would be completed within a week.
However as the tanker entered Goa, the MPT began issuing permission for the work, but the Customs delayed in its procedures, leading to hefty berth hire charges with every passing day.
The MPT had also deployed a tug and appointed an agency to have crew members on board the tanker after the vessel was berthed.
However, expenses to hire the berth, tug and crew on board began escalating into crores of rupees.
The owners then requested the Customs to allow the cargo to be shifted to port shore tanks if there were issues with the recycler registered with the port.
But the Customs claimed that the cargo was under arrest as the ship was arrested. The owners then got a letter from the High Court for a release order but permissions were still not granted, forcing owners to approach the court.
The Customs finally issued a letter imposing 200 per cent duty and a bank guarantee of Rs 8 crore after three months. By then, the owners of the ship and bank representatives decided to opt for inner anchorage to cut down costs and plan an STS transfer.
The permissions for STS were still pending with the Customs when the tanker began drifting and eventually ran aground off Dona Paula on Friday.
