A collaborative investigation performed by Bellingcat and the Trinidad & Tobago Guardian has pinpointed the accountable entities behind a major oil spill within the Caribbean. Melaj Offshore, a Panama-registered firm, has been implicated within the incident, which is taken into account one of many worst oil spills in current Caribbean historical past.
In keeping with findings from Bellingcat, an investigative journalism group primarily based within the Netherlands, and ship registration paperwork obtained from the Zanzibar Maritime Authority, the tug Solo Creed, a 1976-built vessel registered in Tanzania, accompanied the Gulfstream barge throughout its ill-fated journey. The listed proprietor of the tug, Melissa Rona Gonzalez, was recognized as an official of Melaj Offshore Company.
Verification from the authority confirmed the tug’s registration from December 30, 2023, the beginning of its journey, till it deserted the Gulfstream barge round February 6, with the registration interval expiring on February 29. The Panamanian company registry revealed that Gonzalez, an officer of Melaj Offshore, held the ability of legal professional for the corporate, along with her husband, Augustine Jackson, recognized as its authorized consultant.
Each the tug and barge had a historical past of towing Venezuelan oil. The barge, carrying 35,000 barrels of oil on a voyage meant for Guyana, encountered difficulties alongside the way in which. In the end, the 48-year-old barge capsized off the coast of Tobago, leading to a considerable oil slick that unfold westward, reaching the east coast of Bonaire, Aruba, and Grenada. Curaçao stays on excessive alert.
Cleanup efforts are underway in Bonaire, with performing governor Nolly Oleana offering updates. Whereas oil has periodically washed up on the island’s jap coastlines, the closely trafficked vacationer areas on the western facet haven’t been affected. Oleana emphasised the potential of extra spills into inlets on the island.
Island officers are collaborating with the federal government of Trinidad and Tobago to handle compensation for the spill. Oleana said that discussions are ongoing, with authorized specialists from the Netherlands partaking with counterparts from Trinidad and Tobago to determine possession of the ship and the oil product on board.
