by SAEED AL-ASMARI
DAMMAM, Dec 27 – Three expatriate workers are missing after a mobile platform for maintenance services sank in Al-Safaniya offshore oilfield area on Friday.
Two of the missing are Indians and the third is a Bangladeshi, said a statement issued by Saudi Aramco. The remaining 24 workers were rescued and taken to safety.
Saudi Aramco’s response team has beefed up search operations for the missing.
According to preliminary reports, some workers were injured and had to receive medical attention.
The company’s work has not been affected by the accident, the statement said. The company also announced that it would conduct a probe into the cause of the accident.
Khalid Alarqubi, spokesman of the Coast Guard, told Arab News that they received a report from Saudi Aramco that its platform sank about 30 km off Al-Khafji with 27 people on board.
“The Coast Guard rescued 24 people, but three people are still missing. We are working with Saudi Aramco boats to search for the missing workers,” Alarqubi said.
The platform sank in Al-Safaniya, the world’s largest offshore oilfield.
Discovered in 1951, the field has a production capability of more than 1.2 million barrels per day. — Arab News
