Saldanha oil pollution deal imminent

TRANSNET National Ports Authority expects to finalise an agreement with Oil Pollution Control SA at the port of Saldanha within the next week, Eugene Kearns, TNPA port manager at Saldanha, told FTW. Until then O il Pollution Control, which specialises in prevention and cleaning up of oil spillages, will continue to provide a service from which it withdrew a few months ago after failing to reach consensus on the way forward with TNPA. The company, a parastatal and subsidiary of the Central Energy Fund, has in place at Saldanha specialised equipment worth some R180 million and is looking to become involved with other commercial ports in the country. Kearns confirmed that a second like-minded company would soon be appointed. He told FTW recently that a number of Western Cape control companies were being scrutinised for future involvement at the port. “No single company in South Africa, ourselves included, would be able to deal with a major spill at Saldanha and we wish to reduce the risk by engaging