MANILA — The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Thursday assured that the oil within MT Terra Nova is being secured and that siphoning operations are set to begin "not later than two weeks from now."
According to Philippines News Agency, all valves and "high-level alarm pipes" of the tanker, which was carrying 1.4 million liters of oil, have been capped. The working barge and receiving tanker to be used in the recovery operation have been positioned on site. PCG Commandant, Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan, ordered the replacement of initial capping bags with metal caps to ensure safe oil siphoning. The fabrication of metal caps is expected to take seven days, with installation taking an additional seven days. In the meantime, the initial capping bags will be replaced with new ones.
"With the above developments, the siphoning will be moved to not later than two weeks from now. This due diligence measure will however afford us better control to reduce to the barest minimum the possibility of disastrous oil spill during the conduct of siphoning activity," Gavan said.
Currently, "very thin oil sheens" are still present in the sunken tanker's vicinity, but control measures have been put in place, including the laying of oil spill booms, deployment of skimmers, and the use of oil dispersants. Gavan stated that necessary control and containment, as well as clean-up measures, are ongoing in coordination with the local government, other national government agencies, and private sector partners.
On Wednesday, the PCG announced that a seven-man team from the US Coast Guard is scheduled to arrive over the weekend to assist in the oil recovery operation. MT Terra Nova is reported to be carrying the most oil compared to the sunken MT Jason Bradley and MV Mirola 1, which ran aground off Mariveles, Bataan on July 31.