Sri Lanka has started repair work on the ruptured fuel oil tank in the engine room of a stricken fully loaded oil supertanker after plugging the leak, the country�s Navy said on Monday.

The supertanker is 96 kilometers from the Sri Lankan coast, Navy spokesman Indika de Silva said.

Fire broke out in the engine room of the Greek-owned New Diamond on September 3. The ship had left long trails of marine oil slicks.

De Silva said the Sri Lankan Navy and Indian Coast Guard divers on Sunday inspected the vessels and surrounding area for any further leak.

A team of officials from Sri Lanka�s Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) visited the tanker on Monday to inspect and collect samples of marine fuel oil from the vessel loaded with about 2 million barrels of oil.

MEPA has said it plans to take action against the ship�s owner under the country�s laws protecting the marine ecosystem.

(Source: Reuters)