The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) has successfully rescued and towed the oil tanker M/T ALYSSUM after it suffered a main engine failure off the coast of El Alamein, SCA Chairman Osama Rabie announced.
The operation was carried out by the SCA rescue tug Mohamed Bashir, which towed the vessel safely to the Port Said anchorage area to undergo the necessary maintenance and repairs.
Rabie said the authority responded immediately to a request from shipping agent Sphinx to provide towing and rescue services after the tanker became disabled. He noted that the operation covered a distance of approximately 180 nautical miles and was completed successfully in what he described as record time.
The tanker is 182.5 metres long, 43.5 metres wide, has a total tonnage of 23,000 tonnes and a draft of 11.2 feet.
Rabie stressed that the Suez Canal Authority remains fully prepared to provide emergency towing and rescue services both inside and outside the canal’s navigational waterway, as part of its broader maritime and logistical services portfolio, which includes vessel repair and maintenance, oil spill response and marine ambulance services.
He added that the authority’s capabilities are supported by highly trained personnel and a specialised rescue fleet that includes rescue tugboats, marine launches and floating cranes, including the recently commissioned CC floating crane with a lifting capacity of 2,200 tonnes.
