TSAVLIRIS SALVAGE GROUP - News & Announcements

"NEW FLAME" Update - 2007 Nov 20

Due to the fact that no fuel has been spilled from the "NEW FLAME" into the sea, the Gibraltar Government congratulated our Company, TSAVLIRIS SALVAGE GROUP for the successful completion of this important part of the salvage operation.

The next stage of the salvage operation was the removal of the ship. Due to structural degradation suffered by the vessel during the collision and subsequently, it would not be possible to extract the ship in one piece. The ship would therefore have to be cut into two sections, at a point about one-third of its length, from the bow, just forward of frame. When the cargo hold no.2 would have to be cut away from cargo hold no.3 the aft section, as from cargo hold no.3 up to the stern would have to float.

The cutting operation was scheduled to be performed by cutting wire which required two stable platforms in order to fit the winches (master and slave which are separately installed) control rooms and power packs. The stable platforms were provided by Anchor Handling Tug Supply Vessels (AHTS). The only difference between the master and the slave winches is that only the master has a control desk and display panel for the purpose of determining the settings such as winch speed, back tension, pre-set points and the length of the cutting stroke. The cutting operation was estimated to commence around the 23rd of October, weather permitting but it was finally interrupted due to adverse weather conditions. Consequently, the next stage of the operation is to carry on with the wreck removal of the vessel in order to protect the marine environment & the danger to navigation.