THE initial phase of the salvage operation to secure the oil tanker Sounion (IMO: 9312145), which has been burning for 23 days since it was hit by Houthi missiles, could take several more weeks.

Any stand-off with the Houthis, though, has the potential to escalate one of the most complex salvage operations in recent history into a much longer-term political problem, according to sources close to the operation. 

A second attempt to tow the Greece-flagged crude carrier away from its current location off the Yemeni coast got under way on Friday afternoon, following the arrival of another tug to assist in the operation.

Aborted rescue

Initially, two tugs that have been the go-to salvage assets in the Red Sea after Houthi attacks — the 8,000 bhp Gladiator (IMO: 7621011) and the 5,150 bhp Hercules (IMO: 9558517) — were contracted for the task. Both are sanctioned by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

These withdrew just over a week ago, a move linked by the European Naval Force’s Operation Aspides to unspecified technical issues and safety concerns.

The 10,000 bhp offshore tug Aigaion Pelagos (IMO: 9477012), part of the fleet of Greece-based Megatugs Salvage & Towage, has now been hired for the operation, third party salvage industry sources have verified.

A port tug from the same company has also been brought in to help.

The precise details of the highly sensitive operation are being kept confidential owing to concerns over further attacks. However, the initial focus of the salvage remains moving the burning vessel to safe location in order to tackle the blaze.

What happens next regarding the ultimate destination of the tanker remains the subject of increasingly fraught political discussions involving multiple international agencies, naval commands and potentially affected coastal states including Saud Arabia, Eritrea, Sudan and Egypt.

While the Houthis have previously signalled they will not attack salvors to avoid an environmental disaster on their country’s shores, security concerns remain high. Diplomatic sources close to the operation have pointed out that the UN-led negotiations to secure a safe salvage operation of the FSO Safer (IMO: 7376472) took several years and ended up costing millions of dollars simply to avert a catastrophic oil spill on Yemeni shores.

While EU Navfor Aspides, the European Union naval force in the region, said on Friday that it stands ready to “facilitate a new salvage operation” by protecting the ships that will tow the vessel, sources engaged in background discussions with coastal states remain concerned that the Houthis could yet seek to leverage the Sounion for political gain.

The complexities of co-ordinating a response that has fallen to a private firm engaged by the vessel’s insurer, with multiple international stakeholders has further complicated the operation.

The Delta Tankers-operated Sounion was attacked on August 21 and, after the tanker was evacuated by its crew, it was later set alight after explosives were rigged on deck by a Houthi boarding party.

The tanker has been burning ever since, although it is reported to remain anchored and is not thought to have spilled any of its crude oil cargo.

For now, the focus of the salvage operation, is to secure the vessel and tow it to a position so that further assessments can be made. The question of whether a ship-to-ship transfer of its cargo can only be considered once fires have been brought under control.

The tanker’s engine-room is known to be flooded and it has lost power.

Much will now depend on the condition of the Sounion and any damage to pumps, pipes and other vital equipment that may have been sustained.

According to one source directly involved in the operation, the technical and security challenges make this one of the most complex salvage jobs in recent history.

Long timeline

It is also one of the most high risk and politically sensitive.

“It is a big job — more than a month, no doubt,” said one salvage expert, unconnected with the operation.

Nobody involved in the operation is thinking about specific timelines yet. However, one source confirmed that it will not be a quick operation and pointed to the unprecedented technical and security complexities involved.

The uncertainties that salvors may confront in responding to casualties as a result of violent attacks in the Red Sea have been underlined by an earlier case, when a Greek-controlled bulk carrier, Tutor (IMO: 9942627), was sunk in June.

Salvage firm Tsavliris was engaged for the operation under a Lloyd’s Open Form with Scopic declared, but the vessel sank before tugs arrived.

The outcome was a $40m loss and a salvage claim likely to be more than $2m, but US insurer Travelers, which leads the slip, has so far failed to put up security for the salvage claim, it is understood.

Travelers has been contacted for comment.