Finland probes situation after oil tanker damage in Gulf of Finland

The Finnish authorities are investigating into the situation following the damage of an oil tanker in the Gulf of Finland, said the Finnish Border Guard in a press release on Sunday.

The Border Guard has increased its oil spill response capability and will continue to investigate the situation in international cooperation.

The situation remained calm, and the Border Guard did not find any oil spills in the Gulf of Finland, said the Border Guard.

Border Guard's surveillance aircraft were being directed to the Eastern Gulf of Finland area.

Prime Minister Petteri Orpo also said that Finnish authorities were investigating into the situation, and Finland has increased its oil spill response readiness.

“We are closely following the news about the oil tanker damaged in the port of Laukaansuu. Finnish authorities are investigating into the situation. Finland has increased its oil spill response readiness” Orpo wrote in a post in Finnish on his social media platform X on Sunday.

The oil tanker named Koala has been damaged in an explosion near the port of Ust-Luga in Russia’s Leningrad region on Sunday morning, local and international media reported.

The explosion occurred in the engine room while preparing to operate the main engine prompting the crew to evacuate to shore, reported Russian news agency Tass.

Cargo tanks of the vessel, however, were not damaged and the incident did not result in a cargo spill or oil leak, said Tass, quoting the Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transport of Russia (Rosmorrechflot), adding that none of the crew members was injured.