The ''Sovereign'' is a large sea-going

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, su ...

owned and operated by Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. The vessel is powered by conventional propulsion and was built as a multi-purpose

anchor handling tug supply vessel Anchor Handling Tug Supply (AHTS) vessels are mainly built to handle anchors for oil rigs, tow them to location, and use them to secure the rigs in place. AHTS vessels sometimes also serve as Emergency Response and Rescue Vessels (ERRVs) and a ...

. It was christened on 27 August 2003 as ''Anglian Sovereign''. The vessel was part of the fleet of Emergency Towing Vessels that operated on behalf of the UK's

Maritime and Coastguard Agency The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is an executive agency of the United Kingdom that responsible for implementing British and international maritime law and safety policy. It works to prevent the loss of lives at sea and to prevent marine ...

. On 3 September 2005, ''Union Sovereign'' ran aground off

Oxna Oxna is one of the Scalloway Islands, lying north west of Burra in Shetland, Scotland. Oxna has an area of . The island has been uninhabited since the First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as W ...

island in the

Scalloway Islands The Scalloway Islands are in Shetland opposite Scalloway on south west of the Mainland. They form a mini-archipelago and include: * Burra (two islands linked by bridge to each other and Trondra) ** East Burra (with Houss Ness) ** West Burra * ...

while conducting hydrographic surveys. No injuries occurred but the vessel lost approximately 84 tonnes of

gas oil Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma). A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon), elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g. oxygen), or ...

and was severely damaged. A 2006 official report found that the shipmaster's consumption of alcohol and several other negligences on board had been the cause of the incident. In 2007, ownership transferred to JP Knight, which purchased the initial owner, Klyne Tugs of

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...

Notable operations

* Towing ''

MSC Flaminia ''MSC Flaminia'' is a German container ship which caught fire on 14 July 2012, claiming three lives (only two of which could be recovered) and forcing the crew to abandon ship in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. After the fire had been brought ...

'' in July 2012

References

Tugboats of the United Kingdom 2003 ships {{ship-stub