More than half of 1.4 M liters of oil extracted from sunken tanker  

PCG says about 200,000 liters of oil are expected to be siphoned from the motor tanker daily.

MANILA, Philippines — Ten days after the recovery operation, more than half of the 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel oil (IFO) were extracted from Motor Tanker (MT) Terra Nova, one of the three sunken ships in Manila Bay, according to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).

“The contracted salvor, Harbor Star, reported over 806,000 liters of collected oily waste from 19 to 28 August 2024,” the PCG said in a statement on Thursday.

On Aug. 28, a total of 232,187 liters were extracted from MT Terra Nova, bringing the total to 806,254 liters.

This is the first time the PCG has reached its target of extracting 200,000 liters of IFO a day.

Harbor Star’s divers also inspected pumps and hoses for any signs of leakage, but they saw no leaks observed during the underwater survey.

PCG’s BRP Sindangan also monitored the siphoning operation and utilized a water cannon to agitate minimal oil sheen at ground zero. 

Last July 25, MT Terra Nova sank off Bataan, killing a crew member.

The oil spill reached the coastline of Manila and nearby provinces.

Aside from MT Terra Nova, two other ships sank in Manila Bay last month.

MV Mirola 1 ran aground on July 31 and capsized, while MT Jason Bradley sank on July 27.