State raises concerns about tugs to be used for oil tanker escort
State environmental regulators are raising concerns about tugs being built to prevent an oil spill in Prince William Sound, saying the "very limited" and "confusing" information provided so far indicates the vessels may have "substantial" design deficiencies.
The concerns are laid out in a Feb. 22 letter from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation to Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., operator of the Valdez Marine Terminal, where North Slope crude oil is loaded onto oceangoing tankers, and to PWS Response Planning Group, composed of oil shippers such as BP Oil Shipping Co. and Polar Tankers, owned by ConocoPhillips.
The issues broadly echo themes reported separately in January by marine engineer Robert Allan, a consultant hired by Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council, the official oil-spill watchdog group for the sound.
Allan had said he had concerns about overall performance design and testing for five escort tugs and four support tugs being built in Louisiana and Mississippi, and whether they could handle Alaska's rough weather.
Read more: https://www.adn.com/business-economy/energy/2017/03/02/state-raises-concerns-about-tug-design-for-tanker-escort-contract/
