[270521.EN.SEA] More Delays in Legal Wrangle Over Detention of Ever Given in Suez Canal

SHIPPERS with cargo on board the arrested Ever Given are likely to have to wait another week to find out when their goods might be released.

The delay follows the rejection by an Egyptian court of an appeal by the vessel's owner Shoei Kisen, reports The Loadstar, UK.

Over the weekend, the court heard from the shipowner's legal team, which argued that the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) was at fault for the grounding of the vessel in the waterway on March 23, as, given its size and the weather conditions, it should have been accompanied by two tugs.

Japan's Shoei Kisen also filed a US$100,000 compensation claim against the SCA for "losses related to its detention".

However, the court in Ismailia rejected the appeal and upheld the SCA's continued detention of the vessel, referring the case to a higher court, which is expected to hear claims on Sunday (May 30).

The SCA originally demanded $916 million in compensation from the shipowner, a claim described by its insurer, the UKP&I Club, as "largely unsupportable".

The SCA subsequently reduced its claim to $600 million and, during an interview with a local TV station over the weekend, SCA chairman Osama Rabie said the claim could be reduced to $550 million and that the ship would be freed if Shoei Kisen paid an initial $200 million.

However, even this reduced offer goes against established insurance practices, according to marine claims consultant Jose Guerrero. He said: "It is unfortunate that the Suez Canal Authority is not following the long tradition in the maritime industry of having the letter of undertaking (LoU) act as a security for the settlement demand.

"In my 30-year-plus career, I never had a situation in which the claimant rejected the LOU. But then, I never had an Ever Given situation," he told The Loadstar.

Shoei Kisen declared General Average on April 1 and appointed Richard Hogg Lindley as adjuster.

The problem for cargo interests, according to insurance sources, is that the cost of the casualty to its owners is likely to take some time to determine, if it involves claims from other parties - especially if the demand from the SCA continues to change, which means the adjustors will remain unable to fix the level of the general average and salvage securities.

Source : HKSG / Photo : Egypt Today.