Norwegian police have included Skuld Marine Agency AS in an ongoing criminal investigation into the sale of the 38,282-dwt heavylift vessel Harrier (built 1989) for demolition in Gadani, Pakistan.
Norway’s National Authority for the Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Environmental Crime (Okokrim) is probing the vessel sale as a possible breach of European law governing the export of hazardous waste.
Under European waste export rules, any vessel departing a European port for demolition should be dismantled in an OECD country.
The police investigation includes the allegation that not only was the vessel sold illegally but that the parties involved attempted to disguise the final transit as a repair voyage to Oman.
At this stage, the police say no charges have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
The only previous prosecution under the European waste laws took place in the Netherlands, where two Seatrade executives were found guilty in a Rotterdam criminal court and fined for their part in the 2012 sale of four reefer vessels to South Asian breakers.
However, the prosecution in the Harrier case marks the first time that the scope of the investigation has been extended to insurance and other service providers.
Skuld, shipbroker Wirana and technical consultant Aqualis Offshore have been included in the ongoing probe, police confirmed.
Skuld, which clarified that it is hull and machinery insurer Skuld Marine Agency and not the mutual Assuranceforeningen Skuld (Gjensidig) that is subject to the investigation, said: “On the basis of this being an ongoing investigation, Skuld cannot comment further on the matter at this stage.”
The development is likely to see other final voyage insurance providers check their own potential liability for providing cover to vessels going for demolition from European ports.
The Harrier case dates back to April 2017 when the vessel, then named the Tide Carrier, was arrested by the Norwegian Environment Agency after it suffered engine failure and had to be salvaged off the district of Jaeren on Norway’s west coast.
Officials found documentation onboard suggesting that the vessel was heading for scrap in Pakistan. The Harrier had been sold to Julia Shipping as a part of the demolition process.
The ship had been laid up for years off Norway under its original name of Eide Carrier.
The ship’s owner, Georg Eide, and his company, Eide Marine Property, are also part of the investigation.
Georg Eide, in a statement made to TradeWinds through his lawyer, said he was unaware that the vessel would go for demolition when he sold it.
“For this reason, he does not admit any guilt in the matter,” the statement said.
