The UN has completed the transfer of oil from the FSO Safer supertanker offshore Yemen’s Red Sea coast, preventing the immediate threat of a massive spill.

The FSO Safer, a floating storage and offloading unit, is located 60 kilometres (37 miles) north of the port of Hudaydah. It has been used for storing and exporting oil from oilfields in the oil-rich central province of Marib.

Many reports have stated that the Safer has been at risk of breaking up or exploding for years.

The cargo of oil aboard the FSO Safer has been pumped onto the replacement vessel MOST Yemen (formerly Nautica) in a ship-to-ship transfer that began on July 25, following preparations on site for the operation that began in May.

Less than 2% of the original oil cargo remains mixed in with sediment that will be removed during the final cleaning of the supertanker.