The United Nations has again warned of catastrophic risks posed by the derelict oil tanker Safer off the coast of Yemen, which was used as a floating tanker with just over a million barrels of oil inside. built 45 years ago and used as a floating storage platform, has not been repaired since 2015, which led to erosion of its structure and poor condition. Donors said the $33 million pledged at a donor conference hosted by the United Nations and the Netherlands on Wednesday fell short of the desired $80 million goal to transport 1.1 million barrels from Safer before the humanitarian and environmental disaster hit.
“Today is a good start for our efforts to ensure the success of the project, including engaging with the private sector,” said UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen David Gressley.
“We must work quickly to get the remaining funds to start the process, which will take four months,” he added.
The United Nations has indicated that the huge Safer tank contains four times the amount of oil that was spilled during the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster, one of the world’s worst environmental disasters that polluted the waters of Alaska, and worth $79.6 million will help finance the emergency portion of the operation in order to transfer toxic materials from SAFER to a spare ship over the next 18 months.
A total of $144 million is required to fully operate, Greasley said, including securing the fragile tanker in full.
“Today we have taken an important step forward in addressing the threat posed by Sapphire,” Dutch Trade Minister Liesi Schreinmacher said in a statement. “We will continue to support the United Nations in May to raise the remaining necessary funds.” The Netherlands pledged about $8 million. Greenpeace stated that “the operation will cost $80 million, and while that seems like a huge amount, it’s far less than the government’s aid to oil companies.”
“The oil sector’s three-month average profit ($7.3 billion) is more than 90 times the amount needed to save a ship and protect people and the environment in the Red Sea region,” the environmental organization said in a statement.
