Conflicting stories about the sinking of the oil exploration vessel Ocean Petroleum 682 have muddied the waters regarding what actually happened.
China Oilfield Services Limited, or COSL, announced on Jan. 18 that the ship had sunk in port in Nantong, a city located on the mouth of the Yangtze River in Jiangsu Province. The vessel, under construction by Wuchuan Shipbuilding Co, sprang a leak, according to COSL, which claimed that the ship cost US$117 million.
The Jan. 18 announcement said that water had leaked into the ship, causing it to run aground on Jan. 14. This announcement followed days of news about the accident leaking out through the Internet, and the companies involved refusing to acknowledge anything was amiss.
On the afternoon of Jan. 15, someone identifying himself as an employee at Wuchuan Shipbuilding Industry Co. Ltd. posted a blog message:
“Went to a [company] meeting this morning; a ship at Wuchuan’s Nantong site was undergoing a navigation test. Due to an operational error, the ship broke apart right in the middle and sank. This ship is the most expensive and most advanced one we have, worth US$780 million.”
Later, others posted images to the same BBS showed salvage crews rushing to save Ocean Petroleum 682, but the ship had already run aground by the morning of Jan. 17.
However, up until the night of Jan. 17, Wuchuan Shipbuilding Industry Co. Ltd., its parent company China Shipbuilding Industry, the Shanghai Salvage Bureau, and the ship’s owner COSL all remained silent regarding the incident. No one answered the official phone number posted on Wuchuan’s company website.
On the night of Jan. 17, ship owner COSL announced, “Water leaked into the ship,” causing it to begin to sink. They stressed that the situation “has not caused any environmental damage,” and that the “specific reason is still under investigation,” and “we are actively conducting repair work.”
On Jan. 18, Wuchuan’s parent company announced, “The ship was only listing, had not sunk, and that a rescue effort is currently underway.”
The difference in the cost of the ship reported by the whistle-blower and given by COSL may be due to a simple mistake on the whistle-blower’s part.
Seven hundred eighty million yuan equals US$123 million, which is very close to the value of US$117 million announced by COSL. It is possible the whistle-blower from inside the company may have mistaken the figure 780 million yuan for US$780 million.
COSL made the announcement confirming the sinking and setting the value of the loss at US$117 million at the Shanghai Stock Exchange. On Jan. 18 COSL shares fell by 2.65 percent.
Ocean Petroleum 682 was a drilling support vessel intended for use in undersea oil exploration up to a depth of 5000 feet.
Read the original Chinese article.
