The judiciary ruled the continued detention of the vessel Evergiven in the Suez Canal

Arab Weather - The lawyer of the Japanese company that owns the giant container ship "Ever Geffen", which impeded navigation in the Suez Canal for 6 days in March of this year, said that an Egyptian economic court ruled yesterday, Sunday (May 23), to reject the company's grievance regarding the detention The ship, which means continuing to seize it.

The "Evergiven", one of the largest container ships in the world, ran aground in the Suez Canal on March 23, amid high winds and pentagonal conditions, which obstructed traffic in both directions and disrupted global trade.

The attorneys of Choi Kisen Company submitted the grievance to the Appeals Chamber of the Ismailia Economic Court, which was looking into a lawsuit filed by the Suez Canal Authority to establish the precautionary seizure of the ship and decide on a request for financial compensation of $ 916 million from the company that owns the ship for disrupting navigation and efforts to float the ship.

Osama Rabie, head of the Suez Canal Authority, said in a television interview on Sunday that the canal could accept $ 550 million, a compensation slightly less than the $ 600 million he offered earlier in May for the extrajudicial settlement of the matter. And that it is possible to accept 200 million dollars in principle for the release of the ship , provided that the remainder of the compensation amount will be presented later.

Lawyer Ahmed Abu Ali said that the Appeals Chamber accepted the defense of the Japanese company’s lawyers and referred the case to the First Instance Department in the same court, which will convene on May 29 to look into the case.

Lawyer Ahmed Abu Shanab, a second lawyer representing the company that owns the ship, said that referring the case to a first instance circuit allows the parties to the dispute to appeal the rulings of this lower degree to a higher appeals circuit, which means that the judicial dispute may be prolonged.

The Suez Canal Authority said in a statement, issued following the ruling on Sunday, that it is not responsible for the delinquency of "Evergiven", stressing that the responsibility rests with the captain of the ship alone, refuting the excuses presented by the legal team of Choi Kessen the previous day.

The authority also defended its claim for compensation of $ 916 million, noting the costs of the ship’s floatation and the salvage bonus stipulated in the Maritime Law, material and reputational damage, and diverting some shipments away from the canal. The Suez Canal Authority added that one of the boats sank during the floatation process, causing the death of a worker.

Source: Reuters