The full-blown siphoning operation to drain 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel oil (IFO) onboard motor tanker MTKR Terranova off Limay, Bataan’s coast officially began on Wednesday, Aug. 14, after the initial procedure was completed.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said that the initial siphoning operation on Tuesday was finally completed, paving the way for the commencement of the formal draining process. 

The initial process included hot tapping operation and installation of a flange valve plate on one of the eight tanks onboard. One tank is loaded with approximately 175,000 liters of IFO.

Hot tapping is a procedure wherein a pipe is installed on the surface of the cargo tank to let seawater in. Through water flooding, the oil inside the tank will rise and be siphoned. 

Meanwhile, a flange valve plate is an equipment that will be used to drain the oil on the sunken tanker.

Read: PCG: Initial siphoning process for tanker ‘Terranova’ finally begins

These processes determined the rate of oil flow into the siphoning pipes, according to Lt. Cdr. Michael John Encina, commander of Coast Guard Station Bataan.

“The safe working pressure during siphoning was maintained at a maximum of 0.15 bar. Approximately 300 liters of oil were transferred to a tank to test the equipment, with no leaks observed and minimal oiling effectively contained using one length of boom,” Encina said. 

“Additional equipment is expected today to facilitate the next phase of oil transfer operations,” he added. 

The hot tapping operation and installation of a flange valve plate on the remaining seven tanks will also follow to start the siphoning of oil from the said tanks.

Marina exec sacked over ‘Princess Empress’ sinking

As this developed, the PCG said that the Department of Transportation (DOTr) has affirmed the dismissal of Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) Region V Director Jaime Bea in connection with the sinking of motor tanker MTKR “Princess Empress” in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro in February 2023, which caused a massive oil spill.

In a statement shared by the PCG from the DOTr, it said that Transport Sec. Jaime Bautista, through a letter addressed to Marina Administrator Sonia Malaluan dated Aug. 7, confirmed that Bea “was culpable of grave misconduct, gross neglect of duty, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of service over his role that led to the incident.” 

“We have had sinkings before, but no one has been held to account. This time all parties, whether private or public, will be held accountable. There will be no exception. Our policy is zero tolerance to shortcuts, official negligence and disregard of rules. The rule of law, good governance and best practices must prevail throughout the department and its agencies,” Bautista was quoted as saying in the statement.

MTKR Princess Empress sank on Feb. 28 off Naujan's coast while carrying 800,000 liters of IFO. Her sinking caused a massive oil spill that affected Oriental Mindoro and spread to Antique, Batangas, and Palawan.

According to the DOTr statement, Bea “signed and approved the Certificate of Ownership (CO) / Certificate of Philippine Registry (CPR) of MTKR Princess Empress in direct contravention of established rules and procedures, on the venue of registration of Trampers.”

The statement further stated that Bea “failed to maintain the integrity of the processes in the Domestic Shipping Section” and “enforce the provisions of the Citizen's Charter,” which “allowed Marina Regional Office V Engr. Joe Buban to process documents outside the scope of his duties.”

"[T]he Marina official’s actions caused millions of pesos of damages to the government in response operations and tarnished the image and integrity of Marina,” Bautista was quoted as saying in the statement.

Bautista ordered Malaluan to enforce the decision “immediately.”