Company launches plan to refloat, salvage grounded ship in Northwest Passage

Updated Sept. 11 at 4:50 p.m. ET

A plan to salvage the cargo ship Thamesborg is underway after the Canadian Coast Guard completed aerial and remote-operated vehicle surveys of the vessel, which sits grounded in the Franklin Strait.

The 172-metre Dutch cargo ship, owned by Royal Wagenborg, ran aground Saturday while transiting the Northwest Passage on its way to Baie Comeau, Que., from Asia. It was carrying carbon blocks for industrial use.

“Our full attention is still on the ongoing situation of Thamesborg and the preparations for a safe refloating operation,” said Guus van der Linde, manager of corporate communications for Royal Wagenborg.

An update issued by the company late Thursday said the ship remains stable and there is a plan for a salvage master and naval architect to join Thamesborg by the end of the week.

Salvage equipment and additional staff have been mobilized, the update said.

Some of the vessel’s ballast tanks sustained damage in the incident, but the fuel tanks and cargo holds are intact, the company said.

There is flooding in “multiple” ballast tanks but none in the ship’s fuel tanks or cargo hold, an update issued Thursday by the coast guard said.

“Analysis of the damage is ongoing,” Craig Macartney, a coast guard spokesperson, said in an email.

Two coast guard ships — CCGS Jean Goodwill and CCGS Sir Wilfrid Laurier — are responding to the incident. Sir Wilfrid Laurier is on site, while Jean Goodwill is heading to Taloyoak to pick up equipment and personnel.

The cost of repairs, remediation, or salvage, including any remediation action taken by the coast guard, is the responsibility of Royal Wagenborg, the coast guard said.

There were no injuries or pollution reported as of Thursday and the vessel remained stable, the coast guard said in its update.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada is still assessing the incident, said spokesperson Hugo Fontaine. The board will classify the incident in regards to its “relative importance, complexity, and potential for yielding safety lessons,” and decide based on that whether to launch an investigation.

Fontaine advised Nunatsiaq News to check back “in a few weeks” to find out whether the board has decided to investigate.

Note: This story was updated to include new information from ship owner Royal Wagenborg