ATHENS-BASED Sea Traders, owners of the 76,000-dwt bulker Galapagos, have denied that the cause of its collision with the 14,952-TEU Zephyr Lumos in the Malacca Strait was the bulk carrier's loss of steering, reports Oslo's TradeWinds.
The bulker suffered major damage in a collision. The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said the 11-year-old Galapagos. owned by George Procopiou's Sea Traders, has a chunk taken out of its starboard hull and a mangled cargo hatch.
The collision with the 7-month-old Zephyr Lumos happened 14 miles south-west of the Sungai Muar estuary.
Johor MMEA director Adm Nurul Hizam Zakaria said the Galapagos was reported to have experienced steering system failure, causing it to move to the right and block the route of the container vessel, which could not avoid collision.
But manager Sea Traders denied these claims. The company told TradeWinds the Zephyr Lumos "came very close to Galapagos and attempted to overtake the vessel at high speed and at a short distance, leading to a collision".
Sea Traders added that the Malaysian claims "are not correct. The steering gear and all related equipment were in good operating order."
The company said that at 1250 GMT, the Galapagos master reported a collision while the vessel was laden en route to Vizag from Singapore.
The company reported structural damage to the hull, but no injuries and no oil pollution.
"The company has activated its emergency response plan, mobilised equipment and personnel to assess and address the incident and has notified all appropriate state and federal agencies," Sea Traders said.
"The company is working with authorities, federal/state agencies under an approved plan, to investigate the case."
Said the MMEA's Adm Zakaria: "Early investigations showed some damage to the Galapagos as well as some oil spillage. Both ships have been detained to assist in investigations by the Marine Department and the Environment Department.
"We received an emergency signal from the Zephyr Lumos, while the emergency signal from the Galapagos was received through the Indonesian National Search and Relief Agency (Basarnas) in Pekan Baru," Adm Zakaril said.
A Zodiac Maritime said: "We can confirm that the container vessel Zephyr Lumos was involved in a collision in the Malacca Straits on 10 July. There were no injuries to any crew on either vessel and there is no known pollution from the Zephyr Lumos."
The Galapagos is insured through the North of England P&I club and VesselsValue assesses it is worth US$17 million.
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