by Lloyd's List

11 September 2024 (Lloyd's List) - AN OIL spill in South Africa’s Algoa Bay has been linked to a Mediterranean Shipping Co-operated containership by South African authorities.

The Cyprus-flagged, 2002-built, 6,492 teu MSC Apollo (IMO: 9247730) has been anchored in the bay for nearly a week after arriving from Durban on September 5. Before that, it had completed a voyage from Singapore to the South African port.

The South Africa Incident Management Organisation said it had launched an investigation into the spill, which was first discovered on Saturday afternoon. A response craft noticed the slick at 1700 hrs and reported it was coming from MSC Apollo.

But aerial surveillance flights on Sunday September 8, directed by oil spill trajectory model provided by the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation, did not find a spill.

Plans to clean the hull of MSC Apollo to prevent oil stains from transferring to the ocean was postponed on Sunday due to rough seas.

The vessels’ insurers have provided a drone to scan the ecologically important St Croix Islands for oiled seabirds.

MSC was approached for comment.