Pertamina Tanker Spills Crude Oil Into Molucca Sea

An oil tanker owned by Indonesia's state oil and gas company, Pertamina, spilled around 5,400 tonnes of fuel into the Molucca Sea, the domestic media reported on Wednesday.

The KM Patriot Andalan was carrying 7,000 tonnes of fuel from Papua and was anchored at the port of Ternate in eastern Indonesia when high seas caused the tanker to hit a dock and eventually sank.

"We are currently trying to contain the oil spill and prevent it from expanding further, while trying to neutralize the oil already spilled into the sea," Pertamina fuel distribution manager Bagus Handoko, was quoted as saying by the Jakarta Globe newspaper.

Pertamina was not immediately available for comment. Updates will be made as they become available.

Reporting by Fergus Jensen; editing by James Jukwey (C) Reuters 2013.