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ISMAILIA, Egypt The container ship that got stuck in the Suez Canal in March was having difficulty steering due to its high speed and the size of its rudder, and could have chosen not to enter the lane navigable in bad weather, the head of the canal authority told Reuters. .
Suez Canal Authority (SCA) Chairman Osama Rabie’s comments on Thursday came amid a dispute over compensation with the owner and insurers of the container ship Ever Given, which is being held by court order in the canal almost two months after its removal.
The Ever Given stranded in the canal in high winds on March 23, disrupting two-way traffic and disrupting world trade.
A legal team from Japanese owner Shoei Kisen is contesting the vessel’s detention and compensation claim and said SCA was at fault for allowing the vessel to enter and failing to provide tugs.
Rabie said the captain could have detained the ship.
“He knows the capabilities of his ship… so he can come and say, ‘I don’t want to come in, I think the weather is not suitable,’ he said in an interview at SCA headquarters. in Ismailia.
Before running aground, the giant ship was moving at around 25 kilometers per hour, well above the appropriate 8 to 9 km / h for the narrow southern channel of the canal, Rabie said.
Due to the speed, two tugs accompanying the Ever Given could not help it.
“This speed was very high and the rudder was not aligned,” he said. “There were a lot of technical flaws, among which the size of the rudder was not suited to the size of the ship.”
A member of Shoei Kisen’s legal team told Reuters on Saturday that the authority had failed to prove the vessel’s fault.
The SCA sought $ 916 million in compensation for the blockage in court, but then reduced its claim to $ 550 million, including a $ 200 million deposit to secure the vessel’s release.
He says the owner offered $ 150 million in compensation. Shoei Kisen did not comment on the negotiation.
“We have lowered our prices by about 40% and we also said that we will make it easier for them, but honestly the offer they made is not up to the level that we are talking about,” Rabie said.
SCA, which said it suffered damage to property and reputation, reduced the amount it was seeking after receiving an estimate of $ 775 million on the value of Ever Given’s cargo, well below the estimate. of the $ 3 billion it originally used, Rabie said. The ship was worth $ 140 million, he said.
“Of course, it is illogical that the price of the compensation you are asking for is higher than the price of the ship and the cargo,” he said.
A hearing on the compensation claim is scheduled for Saturday. Pending a court ruling, only the court had the power to release the ship or its cargo, Rabie said.
(Additional reporting by Mahmoud Mourad; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
Phorograph: In this photo released by the Suez Canal Authority, the container ship Ever Given sits with its bow stuck in the shore of the Suez Canal on Wednesday March 24, 2021, after getting stuck and blocking all traffic in the vital waterway. Photo credit: Suez Canal Authority via AP.
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