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Libya Attaches Towline to Drifting Russian-Flagged Gas Carrier

towline attached to gas carrier wreck
Libya attached a towline on Tuesday to the drifting wreck (Libyan News Agency)

Published Mar 24, 2026 1:40 PM by The Maritime Executive


Libyan officials on Tuesday, March 24, posted pictures showing a towline secured to the burnt-out gas carrier Arctic Metagaz. Multiple agencies in Libya reported they are monitoring the operation as they worked to quell fears, but it is unclear what the plan is for the vessel.

Some reports indicate that one of the tugs from the oil platforms reached the vessel and put a towline to the hulk, while others said that one of the local factions intervened with its tug and experts in an effort to stabilize the situation. The National Oil Company had announced on Sunday that it was hiring international experts in conjunction with Italy’s Eni, but other reports are saying they have seen no action.

Local protestors reportedly went to the offices of the government-controlled Mellitah Oil & Gas Company seeking clarification on the plan. Other reports have said the various local entities are demanding that the ship not be brought into their areas due to the ongoing dangers. The oil company reportedly said the vessel would not enter Libyan waters.

The vessel was originally about 150 miles north of the Libyan coast near the city of Sirte in central Libya when the explosion and fire occurred on March 3. It at various times drifted to the north and west, approaching both Malta and several smaller islands controlled by Italy before resuming a course toward the Libyan coast late last week.

 

 

The latest reports from the control room in Libya established to monitor the situation placed the hulk of the Arctic Metagaz anywhere from 44 to 65 kilometers (approximately 28 to 40 miles) from the coast, near the Zwara Municipality to the west of Tripoli. The reports indicated that the tug was moving the vessel, possibly to the northwest, to increase the distance from Libya’s offshore oil and gas platforms. Currents and winds had been moving the vessel to the southwest.

Images show the Libyan-flagged tug Assameeda at the wreck site. Other reports said the Navy and Coast Guard have sent vessels to the area. The National Oil Company had noted that it would be a complex towing operation due to the two large breaches in the hull. The vessel is sitting low in the water and listing.

The Misrata Free Zone authority said it had sent a tug and experts out to the vessel. It said it would provide additional technical expertise and operational capacity to the efforts.

The challenge remains that the vessel has approximately 700 tons of fuel aboard and an undetermined amount of LNG. Two of the tanks are thought to have survived the explosion and fire, but with the vessel dead in the water, conditions have not been maintained in the tanks. There could be a buildup of gas that could be released or explode, environmentalists are warning.