MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company continues to deny culpability in the 2021 Orange County pipeline oil spill, despite accepting a proposal to jointly fund a settlement.
MSC-controlled Dordellas Finance Corp and Costmare-controlled Capetanissa Maritime agreed to pay a combined $45m in damages for the 558-barrel spill that fouled a section of the California coastline.
Dordellas’ 14,028-teu container ship MSC Danit (built 2009) and Capetanissa’s 9,469-teu container ship Beijing (built 2006) were accused of damaging the pipeline when they dragged their anchors across it during a storm in January 2021, about nine months before the spill.
The agreement, for which additional terms are still being negotiated, will require court approval.
MSC, in a statement on Sunday, said it agreed to jointly fund a settlement for the claimants to “move forward in a constructive and positive manner following this incident”.
However, it “looks forward to demonstrating in the continuing legal proceedings that the responsibility for the 2021 oil spill remains the responsibility of Amplify Energy, the pipeline owner, who already has pleaded guilty to criminal negligence for the oil spill”.
MSC claims its investigations have revealed that the pipeline did not comply with its original permit to be built sufficiently away from the federal anchorage zone in which the MSC Danit and other ships were anchored.
Furthermore, MSC claims the “negligent conduct” of Amplify, including its repeated failure to take reasonable preventive steps to better protect its pipeline and detect latent damage, was the true cause of the spill.
“Despite becoming aware of increased marine traffic and activity near its pipeline past 2020, Amplify took no measures to mitigate the risk to their pipeline before, during or after January 2021, all of which led to an unnecessary pollution event in Southern California waters and beaches,” MSC said.
“These facts compelled Amplify to plead guilty to federal and state criminal charges for its discharge of the oil caused by its failure to properly detect and respond to the oil spill.”
Amplify agreed in August 2022 to plead guilty to federal criminal negligence charges and pay $13m in penalties and fines. A month later, it agreed to plead no contest to six criminal charges brought against it by the state of California and pay nearly $5m in penalties and fines.
Orange County district attorney Todd Spitzer said Amplify repeatedly turned the 17-mile (27-km) pipeline off and on when the alert sounded, believing it was a false alarm.
