Damaged Northern Sea Route Tankship Awaits Help
The fully loaded 6403 dwt tankship "Nordvik” hit an ice floe and started taking in water while sailing the Northern Sea Route (NSR) last week and as a result a ballast tank was holed reports the Barents Observer.
The hole has been plugged with a cement box and the water ingress has stopped, reports Barents Observer citing the (Russian) Federal Agency for Sea and River Transport. The vessel is now drifting in the Matisen Strait, where the accident happened, waiting for another tanker to come and take the cargo. The ship owner Khatanga Commercial Port is negotiating with nuclear icebreaker operator Atomflot to have the tanker escorted to port in Khatanga.
The Federal Agency for Sea and River Transport is qouted by Barents Observer as stating that the tanker acted in violation of the permit given by the NSR administration by entering waters with medium ice conditions without being escorted by an icebreaker, According to the permit, the vessel had permission to sail in the Kara Sea and the Laptev Sea in light ice conditions and only under escort by an icebreaker.
Source: Barents Observer