§ Lord KENNETasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the figure £1½ million "for capital costs" mentioned in paragraph 7, page 4, of the Department of Trade's recent publication Improved Arrangements to Combat Pollution at Sea covers "specialised equipment for use in off-loading" LNG or LPG carriers involved in a collision or stranded; 1577WA and if not, what arrangements if any, exist for such off-loading.
§ Lord JACQUESAn LNG or refrigerated LPG carrier can only be off-loaded into a compatible gas tanker. If the receiving vessel can be brought alongside the stricken vessel, the transfer can be effected using well proven techniques and the equipment already on board. Although a joint government-industry development project is already under negotiation, suitable hoses for longer distance transfer are not yet available. Consequently the Government caches are for the present confined to specialised equipment for the emergency off-loading of oil and chemicals.