Tenders in for Agulhas wreck
2006-09-23 23:05
East London - The tender for removing the wreck of the Safmarine Agulhas from the East London harbour breakwater would be decided by the end of the month, said the SA Maritime Safety Authority (Samsa) on Saturday.
"All the tenders are in but the owners are still deciding," said Samsa's general operation manager, captain Saleem Modak.
Four international salvage companies - Smit Salvage, Denmark-based SvitzerWijsmuller, United States-based Titan Marine, and Dutch company Mammoet Salvage - submitted tenders in August.
Smit Salvage was awarded the initial contract to refloat the Agulhas.
The vessel ran aground on June 26 when her engines failed shortly after leaving port.
Smit Salvage removed almost all the heavy fuel on board and more than 500 containers. There are still about 80 containers in flooded holds that could not be removed.
The Agulhas began breaking up in heavy weather last month.
- SAPA