The 180-metre CP Valour was travelling from Montreal in Canada to Valencia in Spain with 1,850 tonnes of oil products aboard when it sank on Friday after requesting authorisation to anchor near Faial island.

Maritime authorities said by late Tuesday they had scooped up 40 cubic metres of oil residues from Baia das Cabras beach on the island, part of the Azores archipelago 972 miles (1564 kilometres) west of the capital, Lisbon.

The Bermuda-registered ship, with a crew of 21, was also carrying eight tonnes of triphenyl phosphate, six tonnes of paint and 19 tonnes of oxidants, a marine spokesman said.

Authorities fear the triphenyl phosphate, a toxic fire retardant, could prove lethal to the marine environment if it leaks.

After a Russian tugboat made several unsuccessful attempts to raise the ship, authorities hope with better weather to refloat the vessel by December

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