The volume of claims resulting from the Ever Given incident is likely to be the largest of any accident according to industry sources with a little over 16,000 containers on board and each container needing to supply general average security.
However, the costs being sought by the Suez Canal Authority (SCA), currently US$1 billion according to reports in local media, are “expected to decrease substantially,” said an industry source.
[s2If is_user_logged_in()]Expectations from insurers are that the cost of 12-13 tugs and the two dredgers along with the labour force that successfully re-floated the 400m vessel along with lost business and the cost of delays will be markedly less than the claims currently being suggested.
“Claims in the region of US$500-800 million,” are more likely according to the Container News source, “It’s difficult to break it down, but hard to see how they [the SCA] came up with that figure,” the source added.
The total cost will depend on what the SCA actually claims for, according to the source, with uncertainty around whether the company can claim for a loss of business if ships sailed around the Cape of Good Hope, and whether these ship operators themselves can claim for the delays and extra costs for taking the longer route.
Meanwhile, the Ever Given remains at the Great Bitter Lake station and it is understood that some minor repairs to the bow of the vessel will be necessary as a result of the grounding. Investigations into the accident are being carried out by both the flag state, Panama and the Egyptian authorities.
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