At about 0535hrs this morning, a Panama-registered cargo ship, Tian Yu (4746 gross tons), collided with a Singapore-registered oil tanker, Agate (50063 gross tons) about 10km south west of Horsburgh Lighthouse (about 40km from the east coast of Singapore), outside Singapore port limits (click here for the chartlet).

The Agate sustained some damage to her port (left side) slop tank, and an initial estimate of 350 tonnes of Sumatra Light crude oil was reported to have leaked. The remaining oil from the damaged tank has been transferred to other tanks and there has been no report of any more oil escaping from the tanker. The Tian Yusuffered minor dents to its bow.

There was no report of any injury to crew and both vessels are in stable condition.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has deployed six anti-pollution craft to the eastern fringes of our port limits to monitor the situation. The MPA has also informed the Malaysian and Indonesian authorities of the incident.

The owner of Agate has engaged an oil response company, Briggs Marine Pte Ltd, to clean up the oil spill. An aerial recce is scheduled to be conducted at about 1000hrs to further assess the situation.

None of the spilled oil has hit any of the islands or mainland Singapore.

The MPA's craft will continue to monitor the situation. Navigational broadcasts have been issued to inform ships in the vicinity of the incident, and to keep clear. The MPA will be investigating the incident.

End of Release.