A chemical tanker adrift off the Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq coastline remained adrift on Sunday as prevailing wind conditions marred any hopes of moving it.

The 202-metre long tanker Chem P was seen being dragged across the waves on Malta’s eastern coast on Saturday morning. Two tug boats were deployed at the scene to halt its movements and to pull it away from coastal rocks.

Speaking to Times of Malta on Sunday morning, a Transport Ministry spokesperson said the situation remains "the same" and discussions about when and how it will be towed are ongoing. 

A bystander in Madliena looks over at the chemical tanker stuck in Baħar Iċ-Ċagħaq. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

Opposition leader Bernard Grech said in a Facebook post that, in the past hours, tugboat workers have been working in tension in rough seas, endangering their lives to assist the tanker.

He said he had contacted the crew onboard both tugboats, who had also been front liners in the COVID-19 pandemic.

They were now carrying this responsibility once again offering their indispensable service.

“They deserve our support as they are also assisting us and our country,” he said.

Grech also thanked Gozo Channel employees who had also assisted in the situation.

Malta has been experiencing gale-force winds since Friday night, with the Malta International Airport weather station issuing a warning of strong easterly winds until 8pm on Sunday. The weather station also reports the seas as being "very rough" to eventually become "locally rough". 

Ship-tracking website Vessel Finder shows the St Kitts and Nevis registered vessel "drifting" just off Baħar iċ-Ċaħaq coastline. 

In a Facebook post on Saturday, Transport Minister Ian Borg said Transport Malta is coordinating the rescue operation and said that pollution risk is "low".

The Chem P was built in 1968 and has a carrying capacity of 34,930 tonnes. It is valued at €7.05m.The ship was en route to Marsax lokk from the Spanish port of Algeciras in Cadiz.

The last tanker to run aground in Malta was the Hephaestus, a 60-metre vessel in 2018. It was stranded on the rocks after a heavy storm and remained stranded off Qawra point for six months before it was removed.

The Chem P tanker off the coast of Baħar Iċ-Ċagħaq on Sunday morning. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli