DUBAI: An oil spill from a tanker stranded off Oman’s coast has reached the mainland, while seasonal monsoon conditions are hampering efforts to contain the leak, the UN maritime agency said on Wednesday.
The tanker, CAROLINE BEZENGI, has been stranded off Oman since June 30 after being damaged by explosions. Oman’s Environment Authority reported that oil pollution had reached beaches in the Ras Madrakah area.
The Oman News Agency quoted the authority as saying that “today’s monitoring results showed that some beaches in the Ras Madrakah area were affected by oil pollution”.
The area is more than 200 kilometres from Al-Qibliyyah island, near where the vessel had remained stranded.
A spokesperson for the International Maritime Organisation said the agency was “closely monitoring the oil leakage from the crude oil tanker CAROLINE BEZENGI, which grounded off the coast of Oman on 30 June 2026 and is currently around 22 nautical miles offshore of Sharbithat, Oman”.
The spokesperson added that “oil is drifting offshore to the northeast of Al-Qibliyyah island with some oil reported to be reaching the mainland,” while “the seasonal monsoon has limited access to the vessel and delayed salvage operations”.
Omani authorities said on Monday that they were working to contain the spill, which had spread across approximately 390 square kilometres, according to the latest assessment by the country’s environment agency.
The oil slick is concentrated around the Hallaniyat archipelago off southern Oman. The area contains a marine reserve established last year to protect sensitive ecosystems and marine species, including rare sea turtles.
The Oman News Agency said “a coastal stretch of up to 40 kilometres in the (Ras Madrakah) area is expected to be affected, with a potential impact on the southern beaches of Masirah Island — spanning 10 to 20 kilometres — anticipated in the coming hours, based on current data”.
Cause of spill remains unclear
Omani authorities have not determined what caused the oil leak. British maritime security firm Vanguard said the tanker was hit by explosions in early June while sailing off Yemen, resulting in water entering several sections of the vessel.
Greenpeace and PAX warned that the incident was close to becoming an “environmental disaster”, estimating that the tanker was carrying around one million barrels of crude oil.
The vessel is believed to be part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet”, a network of older tankers used to bypass Western sanctions on Russian oil exports. The fleet has faced criticism over vessel maintenance, insurance and safety standards.
Tankers have also increasingly come under attack in the Gulf region in recent months amid clashes involving the United States, Iran and Iran-aligned groups.
Oil slick reported in Strait of Hormuz
Meanwhile, Iranian media reported that another oil slick in the Strait of Hormuz had reached Iran’s Qeshm Island, affecting beaches and a sensitive mangrove ecosystem.
State news agency IRNA said the pollution had reached parts of Qeshm’s southern coastline and areas of the nearby island of Hengam.
US-based shipping monitoring website TankerTrackers said “the oil spill appears to derive from the Iranian attack on bulk carrier MINOAN PIONEER” in Omani waters on August 3.
“The spillage then drifted across the strait over to Iran,” TankerTrackers said.
