Finnish technology group Wartsila has denied its repairs were responsible for a fire in the engine room of a US tanker.
The company is being sued for negligence and breach of contract and warranty over a blaze on the 21,600-dwt molten-sulphur carrier Sulphur Enterprise (built 1994) near Galveston last May.
A suit filed at the southern district court in Texas by owner Savage SE Operations and its overseas underwriters alleges "significant and extensive damage" to three auxiliary engines and other parts of the engine room.
Wartsila told TradeWinds: "Wartsila’s post-incident investigation revealed that the likely cause of the fire was a failure by the crew to follow prudent engineering practices in the operation of the auxiliary engines on the vessel, and was not related to the earlier maintenance work done by Wartsila.
"The incident did not result in any injuries."
It added: "Wartsila has a positive working relationship with the vessel owner and we continue to provide services to Savage SW Operations. We are confident that this matter will be resolved soon.”
The tanker was out of service for a number of months.
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.
