Around 54 tonnes of heavy fuel oil removed from MV RENA
Remaining 300 tonnes of oil still to be pumped off Oil isnowbeing continuouslypumped at a stable rate from the submergednumber 5 starboard fuel oil tank on the grounded container ship Rena, Maritime New Zealand (MNZ) says.As at 3pm today, around 54 tonnesof heavy fuel oil from the tank had been transferred to the adjacent oil tanker Awanuia.MNZ Salvage Unit Manager Arthur Jobard said this left around 300 tonnes of oil still to be pumped off the ship to empty the final and most challenging tank."It is really pleasing to see oil being pumped from this tank," Mr Jobard said."Getting to this point has been incredibly challenging for the salvors. They have worked tirelessly to start removing oil despite setbacks along the way, and this is a significant milestone for the entire operation. "Every tonne of oil they take off the ship is another tonne that will not go into the water."Mr Jobard said the team was now working to speed up the pumping rate from the tank, in an effort to get the oil off as quickly as possible. The team was using a "hot tapping" technique, which is a method of extracting oil from the submerged tank without allowing ...
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