South Africa’s Antarctic Mission Delayed by Fuel Supply Due to Iran War
Fuel shortages triggered by the ongoing Iran war continue to be felt across the world, potentially also affecting polar missions. South Africa has confirmed delays to its annual Marion Island relief voyage in the Southern Ocean. The rescheduling of the relief mission to the Sub-Antarctic region is due to the late delivery of the polar diesel needed for the operation.
In a statement to local media, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment (DFFE) confirmed that the icebreaker SA Agulhas II was unable to embark on the mission as scheduled on April 9. The fuel shipment arrived on May 1 after weeks of delay, primarily due to the scarcity of some fuel products in the global market.
For polar operations, SA Agulhas II uses a special grade of fuel called polar diesel. This specialized fuel is made to withstand extreme cold temperatures, preventing it from freezing or crystallizing. With the fuel now delivered, DFFE said that it will be loaded onto the vessel in the coming days after final testing and blending are completed.
SA Agulhas II takes around five days to reach the research base on Marion Island. The annual relief mission resupplies the base with food, fuel, and replacement crews and researchers. There were concerns that if the mission was delayed further, with diesel reserves expected to run out around May 20 at the isolated base. DFFE explained that there are backup petrol generators in case the resupply fuel does not arrive on time. There were reports that the base had started to implement power rationing, according to the Daily Maverick newspaper.
Marion Island is located in the Southern Ocean and around 1,242 miles southeast of Cape Town. The research base on the island supports South African-led studies in climate science and oceanography. The base also hosts international collaborative research projects on Antarctica.
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South Africa is the only African nation with a footprint in Antarctica, at a time when the region is highly contested by the global superpowers. The research output of South African scientists in Antarctica is also highly rated, at times outperforming heavyweights in the West. A recent Antarctic Research Trends report led by Sweden’s Umeå University found that South Africa is amongst the top countries in the world producing high-quality research on Antarctica and Southern Ocean science.
The Umeå University report analyzed nearly 30,000 peer-reviewed publications on Antarctica, published between 2016 and 2024. Out of 116 world’s top universities undertaking Antarctica research, the University of Cape Town and its South African research partners ranked 35th position, ahead of Oxford in position 67, Stanford in 79, and Princeton in 82nd. Notably, the report did not just analyze research quantity, which most of the premier universities excel in, but also research quality using the criteria of studies that were more often cited.
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