LNG tanker to receive repairs at anchorage

BOSTON – The Coast Guard says a problem with the computers that control an LNG tanker’s boilers caused a loss of power that left the tanker adrift off Cape Cod.

The Coast Guard said late Tuesday that some power has been restored to the 933-foot Catalunya Spirit’s switchboards. The tanker is being towed by tugs to an anchorage about seven miles off the coast of Gloucester to continue to troubleshoot the problem.

The tanker was carrying 138,000 cubic meters of liquified natural gas from Trinidad and Tobago to Boston when it lost power early Monday about 45 miles off Chatham.

Coast Guard Lt. John Cusch said Distrigas, which operates the facility where the tanker was headed, is speeding up its next LNG shipment and there were no concerns about local LNG supplies.