EMEA News
Gibraltar Releases LPG Carrier Detained After Bunker Spill
The authorities at Gibraltar have released the LPG carrier which prompted a shutdown of bunker operations last week after a bunker spill.
The Gas Venus has been released under the authority of the captain of the port, the Gibraltar Port Authority said in a statement on its website on Thursday.
The release was conditional upon a cash bond to the sum of £1.5 million to cover all oil-spill response and clean-up operations.
"The vessel's departure from Gibraltar will have no effect on the ongoing investigation as all evidence from the Gas Venus has already been collected," the port authority said.
"Clean-up operations remain focused on the area of Rosia Bay and continue to progress well."
An estimated 1,000-2,000 litres of VLSFO was spilled while the Gas Venus was being bunkered at Gibraltar on August 1 as a result of the vessel's tanks overflowing. Bunker operations were suspended from August 1-5.
Gibraltar is the largest bunkering location in the Mediterranean, with about 4 million mt/year of fuel deliveries.
