Gard and the Norwegian Hull Club face claims running into tens of millions of dollars following an explosion on a Stolt Tankers ship at the port of Ulsan in South Korea over the weekend.
Arendal-based Gard is the claims leader for the hull and machinery cover, as well as providing protection and indemnity cover, for the 43,478-dwt chemical tanker Stolt Groenland (built 2009).
Bergen-based Norwegian Hull Club is the claims leader on hull and machinery cover for the Odfjell-controlled 9,118-dwt Bow Dalian (built 2012), which was also affected by the explosion.
Gard is also providing P&I cover for the Bow Dalian.
The extent of claims will depend largely on whether the Stolt Groenland hull can be saved. Pictures of a dramatic explosion suggest that it is in danger of becoming a constructive total loss.
However, a Stolt spokesperson told TradeWinds the vessel is in “stable condition” and that the extent of the damage is still unknown.
The insured value of the hull is not clear but ship valuation website VesselsValue estimates the market value to be $31m.
Despite the dramatic nature of the explosion, the crew from both vessels are safe, according to statements from both Stolt and Bergen-based Odfjell, which controls the Bow Dalian. That should limit personal injury claims for the insurers.
No significant pollution
There are also no reports of significant pollution resulting from the casualty, which should help keep claims costs down.
Chemical cargoes often evaporate without causing pollution.
The cause of the accident is under investigation. However, there has been a suggestion that the explosion may have been caused when a cargo of styrene monomer overheated.
Gard has been hit by a series of high cost claims recently. It is the P&I insurance provider behind the 37,499-dwt Bow Jubail (built 1996), which ran up claims of around $50m following a 217 tonne bunker spill at the port of Rotterdam in June 2018.
It also is one of the hull and machinery cover providers for the 56,642-gt ro-ro containership Grande America (built 1997), which sank off the coast of France in March this year following a fire.
In addition, Gard is the hull and machinery claims leader for the 147-metre pipelayer Star Centurion (built 2002), which sank off Singapore in January this year following a collision.
