| Name, Place | Date | Cause | Tons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ixtoc I oil well, S Gulf of Mexico | Jun 3, 1979 | Blowout | 600 000 |
| Nowruz oil field, Persian Gulf | Feb 1983 | Blowout | 600 000 |
| Persian Gulf | began Jan 23, 1991 | Spillage by Iraq | 445 000 |
| Atlantic Empress & Aegean Captain, off Trinidad and Tobago | Jul 19, 1979 | Collision | 300 000 |
| Castilo de Bellver, Off Cape Town, South Africa | Aug 6, 1983 | Fire | 250 000 |
| Amoco Cadiz, near Portsall, France | Mar 16, 1978 | Grounding | 223 000 |
| Torrey Canyon, Off Land's End, England | Mar 18, 1967 | Grounding | 119 000 |
| Sea Star, Gulf of Oman | Dec 19, 1972 | Collision | 115 000 |
| Urquiola, La Coruna, Spain | May 12, 1976 | Grounding | 100 000 |
| Hawaiian Patriot, North Pacific | Feb 25, 1977 | Fire | 99 000 |
| Braer, off Shetland Islands | Jan 5, 1993 | Grounding | 88 000 |
| Aegean Sea, off N Spain | Dec 3, 1992 | Unknown | 75 000 |
| Othello, Tralhavet Bay, Sweden | Mar 20, 1970 | Collision | 60 000 |
| Sea Empress, off SW Wales | Feb 15, 1996 | Grounding | 60 000 |
| World Glory, off South Africa | Jun 13, 1968 | Hull failure | 46 000 |
| Exxon Valdez, Prince William Sound, Alaska | Mar 24, 1989 | Grounding | 35 000 |
| Keo, off Massachusetts, USA | Nov 5, 1969 | Hull failure | 30 000 |
| Storage tank, Sewaren, New Jersey, USA | Nov 4, 1969 | Tank rupture | 28 000 |
| Ekofisk oil field, North Sea | Apr 22, 1977 | Well blowout | 28 000 |