MSC Fined $50,000 for Ghana Bunker Spill

MSC has been fined $50,000 by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authourity for an HFO spill at the Tema Port that was linked to container ship MSC Alexa.

The Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has been fined $50,000 by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authourity (GPHA) for an HFO spill at the Tema Port, which was linked to container ship MSC Alexa, local media reports.

The spill is reported to have occurred on May 10 at around 3 a.m., and resulted from the vessel's tanks being contaminated during ballasting.

The spill is said to have spread to the port's new jetty, which is under construction, dry-dock areas, marine dock, oil jetty, the VALCO Wharf, and the leeway breakwater of the canoe beach, as well as portions of the port's fishing harbour.

"We have an oil spill contingency plan in place and we would have responded immediately to minimise the effect of the spill if we had prior notice," said Jacob Kobla Adorkor, director of Tema Port for the GPHA.

"The spillage only came to our attention on Wednesday, May 11, 2016, when our security men, who were on an international standardisation organisation (ISO) compliance patrol at the port, smelled the oil in the environment," added Adorkor, who also noted that no spill response equipment was onboard the MSC Alexa at the time of the spill.

Adorkor says that because MSC and the terminal operators, Meridian Port Services (MPS), did not inform the port authority of the spill as required under international regulation, GPHA decided to impose a fine "to send a signal to other port users that you cannot pollute the port and go scot-free."

Officials say that both MSC and MPS will also be surcharged to cover the cost to clean the oil from the water's surface.

"The cleaning process would last for two weeks due to the severity of the spill, and we can only declare the port to be oil-free after the process has been certified by our safety personnel," said Adorkor.

In 2014, Ship & Bunker reported that a planned $1.5 billion expansion of the Port of Tema would make it the largest port in West Africa.

Earlier this month, it was reported that construction of a marine gas oil tank terminal at Ghana's Takoradi Port has begun amid hopes that the port will become the new bunkering hub within the West African sub-region.