Companies weigh other options for Sounion tanker as towing judged unsafe

Private companies involved in salvaging the Sounion tanker, which was attacked by Yemen's Houthis in the Red Sea, are exploring other options after the towing operation was deemed unsafe, the European Union's naval mission said on Tuesday. The Sounion, which was struck on Aug. 21 and which the Houthis and maritime sources have said has been rigged with explosives, is laden with about one million barrels of crude oil and still on fire. The EU's naval force Aspides has said it will provide protection to tugboats that will deal with the salvage operation. "The private companies responsible for the salvage operation have concluded that the conditions were not met to conduct the towing operation and that it was not safe to proceed," Aspides said in a post on X on Tuesday. "Alternative solutions are now being explored by the private companies." If a spill occurs, it has the potential to be among the largest from a ship in recorded history and could cause an environmental catastrophe in an area that is particularly dangerous to enter.