VZCZCXYZ0008
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHDG #2466/01 3032055
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 302055Z OCT 07
FM AMEMBASSY SANTO DOMINGO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9522
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 002466 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ENRG EPET SENV KPAO DR
SUBJECT: LIQUID PROPANE GAS TANKER RUNS AGROUND: THREAT OF 
GAS SPILL/EXPLOSION REAL BUT MINIMAL 
 
Summary:  A liquid propane gas (LPG) tanker ran aground on 
October 29 off the coast of San Pedro de Macoris.  A U.S. 
Coast Guard technical team is on-board and assessing the 
condition of the tanker and has preliminarily determined that 
the risk of a gas leak or explosion is minimal.  The 
Dominican government, while slow to respond immediately, has 
convened its emergency action team; all relevant government 
ministries are on-site with the USCG manning a situation 
control center. End Summary. 
 
A Liberian flagged LPG tanker, the MV SCF Tomsk, ran aground 
on Monday morning at 3:00 am after breaking away from its 
moorings in high winds and heavy seas caused by Tropical 
Storm Noel.  The tanker, stuck on a reef approximately 100 
yards off the coast approximately 10 miles west of the 
eastern city of San Pedro de Macoris (SPM), is holding 
roughly 50,000 barrels, or 2 million gallons, of LPG and 
butane.  There have been conflicting messages about the 
likelihood of a gas spill/leak, which has caused tremendous 
concern among the local popultation of SPM, but an initial 
assessment by a U.S. Coast Guard technical team dispatched on 
October 29, in collaboration with the company awarded the 
salvage contract, assesses the risk of an immediate explosion 
or gas release as unlikely. 
 
The tanker, which is a new construction, reportedly meets the 
International Maritime Organization's standards for new 
tanker construction with outer and interior hulls to avoid 
leaks/spills.  There are, however, a number of risk factors 
that will require attention in the coming days.  The tanker's 
outer hull has been breached on the port side and is taking 
on water.  The water is too shallow for the ship to sink; 
however, eight foot sea swells from Tropical Storm Noel 
continue to pound the tanker as it lists at a 5 degree tilt, 
raising the risk of additional structural damage to the ship. 
 If there is, in fact, damage to the ship's inner hull, which 
is unlikely according to the initial USCG assessment, and the 
LPG leaks, there would be a risk of explosion as the liquid 
converts to gas and cracks the inner hull of the ship.  At 
this point, however, the primary concern is the ability of 
the ship to maintain is electricity generators running, which 
are required to maintain the fuel in its liquid form.  If the 
electricity goes out the inner hull of the ship can maintain 
the necessary temperature to keep the fuel in liquid form for 
up to two days.  After that it must begin to release the gas 
into the air to relieve the pressure on the inner hull or 
risk an explosion. 
 
Although slow to react, the Dominican government is now on 
site and coordinating a multi-agency response to the 
situation.  The current response plan, once the assessment is 
complete, is to utilize tugs to remove the ship from the 
reef; as long as the inner hull is not breached, the ship 
will be able to sail under its own power.  The Dominican 
government is reportedly considering an evacuation of the 
local population if the conditions deteriorate or if a 
controlled gas release becomes necessary.  Since the outer 
hull breaches are merely ballast tanks, the ship should be 
able to continue under its own navigation if it is 
successfully extricated from the reef.  A press conference is 
scheduled for 5 p.m. local time to allay concerns that have 
made it into the press that the risk of a disaster is high. 
The Consular Section is preparing a warden message (to clear 
through OCS) for the nearly 3,000 American citizens living in 
SPM advising them to pay close attention to local media 
outlets and monitor the situation carefully.  No warnings 
have been approved yet for the official Embassy community. 
 
The tanker's cargo was intended for LPG terminals in both SPM 
and Haina, which is just west of Santo Domingo.  According to 
the owner of the local LPG terminal and storage/distribution 
facility (Coastal Dominicana), Arturo Santana, the tanker had 
completed its delivery of LPG to SPM by Sunday the 28th and 
had been waiting, attached to its moorings, for Tropical 
Storm Noel to pass before continuing on to Haina.  According 
to multiple reports, the ship broke free of its moorings and 
ran aground in high sea swells and heavy winds.  Arturo 
Santana told ECONOFF that there is "absolutely no risk" of a 
leak or explosion.  However, the U.S. Coast Guard's 
assessment team has not yet made its final determination as 
it is still conducting its structural assessment of the ship. 
 
 
The tanker is owned, according to multiple sources, by 
Geogas, a Switzerland-based company that is one of the 
world's major LPG shipping companies, and is operated by a 
London-based company, Nobo Shipping.  Geogas also holds a 15 
percent stake in the local LPG storage and distribution 
facility, which is owned primarily by Coastal Petroleo 
Dominicana, also known as Propagas.  Captain Westin, the 
local insurance underwriter's representative of Lloyd's of 
London who insures the ship, told ECONOFF he is not yet 100 
 
percent sure of the ownership and operator details, although 
he confirmed that his information matches the information 
above.  However, the SCF Tomsk is not listed in Geogas' fleet 
listing on its website and an internet search 
(www.coltoncompany.com - The World Fleet of Fully 
Refrigerated LPG Carriers) listed its owner as a Russian 
company, Sovcomflot, which appears to be the full name for 
the acronym SCF. This confusion could be explained if Geogas 
is merely leasing the vessel from the Russian company, but 
this assumption has not been confirmed.  The website listed 
its last update as May 11, 2007.  According to both Captain 
Westin and the USCG, the captain of the tanker is Russian and 
there are 23 crew (mixed European and Dominican) aboard along 
with four local company representatives. 
BULLEN