A claims office has been opened to compensate victims of Singapore’s worst oil spill in more than a decade, following a collision involving a bunker tanker.
The 29,900-gt Dutch-flagged dredger Vox Maxima (built 2009) struck the 8,700-dwt bunker tanker Marine Honour (built 2007) at Pasir Panjang terminal on 14 June, causing marine fuel to spill into port waters.
The International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds (IOPC Funds) and the Marine Honour’s insurer said on Tuesday that they were opening the office in Singapore as claims were likely to exceed the shipowner’s liability for the spill.
Straits Bunkering, the owner of the Marine Honour, is liable for the spill as the source of the oil, even if it was not at fault. The collision followed a sudden loss of engine and steering control on the Vox Maxima, operated by Van Oord Ship Management of the Netherlands.
Popular beaches on the resort island of Sentosa were fouled with fuel oil in the days after the spill from the Singapore-flagged bunker tanker. Other beaches and a coastal nature reserve were also affected.
Straits Bunkering has taken legal steps to limit its liability, and the costs of the spill are likely to top that amount, IOPC Funds said on Tuesday in a joint statement with British Marine, the insurer of the Marine Honour.
British Marine is part of the QBE Insurance Group, a multinational insurer based in 27 countries.
Compensation will be available for fishing and tourism businesses affected by the spill, those involved in clearing up the oil and others affected by property and environmental damage.
They can include individuals, companies and governments. The international body funds compensation payouts with dues collected from oil-importing industries in member states.
There is a three-year limit on submitting claims. IOPC Funds has set up a dedicated web page to handle claims.
“Clean-up and response operations following the Marine Honour incident are ongoing,” it said.
“Given the latest information collated, claims relating to this incident are likely to exceed the limit of liability of the insurer.”
Singapore is one of the 121 member states eligible for compensation from the funds.
IOPC Funds has been involved in 150 incidents since 1978 and paid out $992m for major casualties including the sinking of the 82,100-dwt Prestige (built 1976) that spilled thousands of barrels of oil onto Spain’s north-west coast in 2002.
Read more
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- Dredger lost power and steering before collision
- Oil spill clean-up underway in Singapore after Van Oord dredger rams bunker tanker
