Asia/Pacific News
Ever Judger Not Source of Balikpapan Spill and Fire: Officials
Officials Wednesday confirmed a spill and fire at the weekend in Indonesian waters off Balikpapan, Borneo was not caused by Panamax Bulk Carrier MV Ever Judger, with the country's state oil company Pertamina saying the source of the leak was a cracked underwater pipeline.
"The pipe was found ... in a broken condition. There were external factors that caused that," Togar MP, general manager of Pertamina's refinery in Balikpapan, was quoted by Reuters as saying.
Pertamina had originally stated that testing indicated the oil was marine fuel oil from the Ever Judger.
However, after 10 samples were tested Pertamina has now determined the spill was in fact crude oil, the Jakarta Post reports.
"The Managers of the Ever Judger confirm that on the morning of the 31st March 2018, an oil slick ignited some distance (at least a few hundred metres) ahead of Ever Judger which was at anchor," the Ship Managers of the Ever Judger said in a statement emailed to Ship & Bunker.
"The oil slick was ahead of the vessel and once ignited drifted down and engulfed the Ever Judger within minutes, probably due to the tidal effects.
"We can positively state that the oil slick and it's ignition did not originate from the Ever Judger."
Pertamina said was still calculating the size of the spill.
