Viking 2 BINH MINH 02:Spratly Islands Oil dispute

China's ambassador to the Philippines, Liu Jianchao, has insisted China's intentions were peaceful and said that China was not looking for oil in the disputed waters and, therefore, no other country should.

Viking 2 has been working on surveys for Japan's Idemitsu group, which is producing oil from Block 05-1D in the Dai Hung field.

Two of the foreign ships were named Fei Sheng No. 16 and BI 2549, the newspaper said.

In order to prevent the foreign ships' harassment, the Viking 2 and other protective ships operated by PTSC fired warnings. The foreign ships left the scene, and the Viking 2 has continued to operate in the area, it said.

Officials at PetroVietnam weren't available for comment.

Last week, Chinese patrol ships threatened a PetroVietnam ship, the Binh Minh 02, and damaged some of the equipment it was using in Block 148, which is near Nha Trang city in central Vietnam, prompting a strong reaction from Vietnam,



(IMO: 8326319) BINH MINH 02
Builder
: Folksverft Stralzund, Germany, 1983
Type of Vessel
: Seismic Research Vessel
Converted
: India, 2008
Owner
: PTSC Marine
Length O.A.
: 64.67m
Length P.P
: 55.0m
Operator
: Nordic Maritime Pte Ltd.
Breadth (Moulded)
: 13.80m
Call Sign
: 3EQY5
Breadth (Extreme)
: 13.80m
Flag State
: Vietnam
Depth (Moulded)
: 9.20m
Port of Registry
: Vietnam
Draft (Max)
: 5.22m
Classification
: Russian Maritime Register of Shipping
Draft (Mean)
: 5.22m
Gross Tonnage (Grt)
: 2281 R.T