The LNG tanker has come out of the rough South-Easterly storm with flying colours, we might say.

As reported in this paper, the ship on Thursday, with the storm approaching, it was disengaged from the gantry and anchored further out. It then rode the storm.

This successful maneuver got all the government spokespersons dizzy with joy that the tanker faced the storm and won.

It is of course hardly that. The ship did not have gas in it as the gas process still has to get a permit and the process to begin.

It is true it was a rough storm to begin with and South-Easterly storms tend to get rough. It is a moot point now to evaluate whether this storm was one of the worst or not. As every architect knows, one must prepare oneself for then once in five years storms, the once in 20 years storms and also for the ones in 10 years storms.

As this paper explained last week, once it is full of gas, the ship cannot move with its own engines but has to be manouvred by tug boats working in rough seas.

It can even be pulled right out of the harbour and wait out the storm outside the bay. One good thing is that such storms are usually predicted wit hours if not days in advance, so proper precautions can be taken.

Once this method has been chosen for the power station, whether one likes it or not, we have entered an era of danger. One could argue, with some degree of truth, that storms such as this weekend’s pose danger even to civilian flying. Those who understand flying from a scientific point of view can speak of the many challenges planes face when taking off in such weather and in such winds and landing in such weather and in such winds. But we have got used to planes coming and going in all kinds of weather as long as the proper precautions are taken, which we know they are.

ERA will today discuss and decide whether to permit the operation. This newborn commission now finds itself at the centre of national attention. Beyond the scientific arguments, there could be at the back of many minds the fact that since the ship rode well in its first storm, all is well.

That may be the case, or, else, it may not be the case. Certainly, as pointed out in previous times, the documentation is not all ready yet and some tests were carried out using desktop methods rather than real measuring methods.

The government, on the other hand is under pressure to get this gas power station up and running, as it is far too late on the timetable. But gas is a deadly fuel and if anything goes wrong, the civilian population of the immediate vicinity could be at risk.

Meanwhile, one awaits more information on what is happening on the gas pipeline project between Sicily and Malta. The sooner this is up and running, the better for the peace of mind of all around. We would not have to watch the weather with worry.