A US shipowner is suing Finnish technology group Wartsila for negligence after a fire on a molten sulphur carrier.
Savage SE Operations and its overseas underwriters have filed a suit in the US district court in the southern district of Texas.
They also allege breach of contract and warranty.
The admiralty case arose after a fire broke out in the engine room of the 21,600-dwt Sulphur Enterprise (built 1994) on 7 May while it was in the Galveston Ship Channel.
This caused "significant and extensive damage" to three auxiliary engines and other parts of the engine room, the plaintiffs say.
The tanker was out of service for a number of months for repairs.
It had been drydocked between January and May 2018 in Tampa, Florida, to undergo ordinary and routine repairs, the court papers said.
Wartsila had been contracted to perform a complete overhaul of auxiliary engine number three.
Savage alleges the blaze was a result of and caused by defective work performed by Wartsila during the overhaul.
Wartsila has been contacted for comment.
The tanker is managed by Savage Marine Management of Florida.
