The Strategist

Suez Canal Authority arrests Ever Given ship



04/14/2021 - 03:57



The container ship Ever Given has been arrested over delays in paying compensation for its March accident, Al-Shorouk newspaper reported. Last month, the ship ran aground in the middle of the Suez Canal, blocking it. This caused a massive traffic jam of ships, container ships and tankers for several days. The Suez Canal Authority estimates the damage from the accident at $1 billion.



Robert Schwemmer
Robert Schwemmer
The arrest of the container ship was announced by Suez Canal Authority head Osama Rabia. He said that the payment of compensation is delayed by the company that chartered the ship. 

It is obliged to pay 90% of the required amount but "does not want to pay anything", claims Mr. Rabia. An investigation into the container ship's irregularities is expected to be completed by Thursday, April 15. Negotiations on compensation should resume after that.

A source at the Canal Authority added that Ever Given's crew will be formally notified of the court order today and will have to comply with it, causing the container ship to be unable to continue its journey until the compensation issue is resolved.

The Suez Canal was completely blocked from 23 to 29 March. Traffic was resumed after Ever Given was able to break the blockage. In a week of downtime, world trade could have lost up to $10bn.

source: reuters.com