Vessel salvage op: 2 Singapore firms show interest, says Goa CM

Panaji: Two Singapore-based companies have come forward to empty thenaphtha-laden vessel 'MT Nu Shi Nalini' which ran aground near the Goa coast on October 24, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Tuesday. He said the state government decided to rope in professional entities to carry out salvage operation after two attempts to unload naphtha resulted into failures. "We have decided to take onboard professional entities to carry out salvage operation in consultation with Union ministries of Home and Shipping," he told reporters. The CM further said the two Singapore-based firms showed interest to carry out the task after conducting a survey of the vessel. He said the work order would be issued by Wednesday. "The salvage operation will take at least 10-15 days. The entire cost of the operation will be taken care of by the owner of the vessel and the Mormugao Port Trust," he said. The tanker with 2000 tonnes ofnaphtha, a flammable liquid, 50 tonnes of heavy oil and 19 tonnes of diesel ran aground near Dona Paula, 2.5 nautical miles off the Panaji coast in the Arabian Sea. The ship had started drifting due to cyclonic winds on October 24. Sawant informed that no oil spillage was reported and that the ship was safe. —Agencies