Tonnage supplier British Marine and operator Klaveness AS are caught in the middle of a multiparty arbitration after a Mississippi River collision that damaged a tugboat and dock.
US stevedoring company Cooper T Smith and British scrap iron shipper European Metal Recycling (EMR Ltd) are chasing both shipowners from different directions in a London arbitration and in US proceedings filed to preserve evidence.
The 55,900-dwt Aquitania (built 2006) allegedly caused up to $800,000-worth of damage to Cooper's discharging facilities — the Cooper Consolidated Darrow LLC Midstream Buoys at Darrow in Louisiana — besides losing an anchor and anchor chain in the 25 March incident.
Vessel release
Court documents in US proceedings show that British Marine, through its insurer the Swedish Club, provided a letter of undertaking in that amount to get the ship released.
But through British Marine vessel-owning affiliate Jubilee Ship Holding Ltd, the shipowner has taken the position that head charterer Klaveness is legally liable both for the stevedore's and for the owner's own damages.
Lawyers claim this is because of Klaveness' obligation under the charter not to direct the ship to an unsafe port or anchorage.
Campbell Johnston Clark lawyer Jacqueline Zalapa, who is representing the Aquitania's registered owner, said details of the arbitration remain confidential.
"As any prudent shipowner responding to an unfortunate incident, the registered owners’ focus has been, and shall remain, on taking all necessary steps to ensure the safety of the crew and the vessel," she said.
Shipmanagement sources said damage to the ship plus interest and costs would likely bring the total claim over the $1m mark.
Meanwhile EMR, as parent of Klaveness' sub-charterer Camden Iron & Metal, has been taking steps to defend itself from the claims that will eventually be passed down the chartering chain for its account.
Pressing for probe
As the end user of the ship and a regular Klaveness customer, EMR and insurer Meco Group have been pressing for surveyors to inspect the ship’s mooring lines, documents and electronic records. They also want EMR’s lawyers to interview the master and chief officer.
This is something British Marine has been unwilling to permit.
In a court action in Connecticut, where the vessel proceeded from the US Gulf, EMR sued to force Klaveness to permit the inspections during a New Haven port call.
US District Judge Robert Chatigny declined to order Klaveness and the ship's master to comply. Email records in the court docket show that Klaveness passed the request to British Marine, which ultimately denied the request.
Arrow documents
An Arrow Shipping fixture recap seen by TradeWinds shows that EMR had taken the supramax from Klaveness on a single voyage time charter in January at a rate of $16,000 per day with delivery in Rotterdam and redelivery in Turkey or Egypt.
The vessel is now in the eastern Mediterranean underway to Iskendurum, Turkey, according to vessel tracking data. The terms of Klaveness' time charter from British Marine were not available.
EMR chartering official Martin Thomson said the company was not willing to discuss the case. Klaveness' legal department had not responded to a request for information, and British Marine lawyer Zalapa had not received instructions to comment, before TradeWinds went to press.
