Egypt confiscates ship Ever Given and asks for compensation 0:37
(CNN Business) -
Egyptian authorities seized a huge freighter that blocked the Suez Canal for nearly a week last month amid a dispute over financial damages.
An Egyptian court ordered the ship's Japanese owner, Shoei Kisen Kaisha, to pay $ 900 million in compensation as a result of losses inflicted when the Panamanian-flagged Ever Given prevented maritime traffic from transiting the vital world trade waterway. state news outlet Al Ahram said on Tuesday.
The hefty bill also includes maintenance fees and costs for the rescue operation, Al Ahram reported.
An international rescue operation operated 24 hours a day to remove the ship from the banks of the canal, intensifying in both urgency and global attention with each passing day, as ships from around the world, carrying fuel and vital cargo, they could not enter the canal.
The Ever Given was successfully refloated on March 29 and transferred to nearby Great Bitter Lake to be inspected for seaworthiness and allow repairs to be made.
A crew of 25 Indian nationals remains on board the ship.
Shoei Kisen Kaisha said insurance companies and lawyers were working on the compensation claim and declined to comment further.
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The ship's technical managers, Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM), said on Wednesday that the ship had been declared safe for passage to Port Said in the Mediterranean Sea, but was detained due to the dispute between the Suez Canal Authority ( SCA) and the boat owners.
LOOK
: Egypt asks the owner of the ship that got stuck in the Suez Canal for US $ 900 million
"SCA's decision to stop the vessel is extremely disappointing," BSM CEO Ian Beveridge said in a statement.
“From the beginning, BSM and the crew on board have fully cooperated with all authorities, including the SCA and their respective investigations on grounding… BSM's main objective is a rapid resolution of this matter that will allow the vessel and the crew from the Suez Canal, "he added.
UK Club, one of Ever Given's insurers, said Tuesday it had responded to a SCA claim for $ 916 million and questioned its basis.
“Despite the scale of the claim, which was largely unsupported, the owners and their insurers have been negotiating in good faith with the SCA.
On April 12, a generous and carefully considered offer was made to the SCA to resolve their claim, ”the statement said.
UK Club says it is Ever Given's insurer for certain third party liabilities, including claims for obstruction or infrastructure problems, but is not the insurer of the ship itself or the cargo.
His statement went on to explain why UK Club believes the scale of the claim is invalid.
“The SCA has not provided a detailed justification for this extraordinarily large claim, which includes a US $ 300 million claim for a 'ransom bond' and a US $ 300 million claim for 'loss of reputation'.
The grounding did not cause contamination or injuries.
The ship floated again after six days and the Suez Canal quickly resumed business operations.
The claim submitted by the SCA also does not include the professional rescuer's claim for their rescue services, which owners and their helmet insurers expect to receive separately, ”the UK Club statement said.
The ship's cargo has been seized until the dispute is resolved, according to the Suez Canal Authority.
More than 400 ships were blocked from the crucial shipping lane when the Ever Given ran aground on 23 March.
Egyptian authorities are still separately investigating the circumstances that led to the situation.
Chris Liakos contributed to this report.
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