The Ever Given container ship that was stuck in Suez Canal for almost a week still cannot sail away from the canal until its owners pay compensation to Egypt authorities for the loss caused due to the blockage. Egyptian authorities have asked the owners of Ever Given to pay $1 billion in compensation or else it wouldn’t release the ship.
The billion-dollar amount takes into account the salvage operation, costs of stalled traffic and lost transit fees for the week that the Ever Given blocked the Suez Canal.
The massive cargo ship is currently in one of Suez Canal’s holding lakes, where authorities and the ship’s managers say an investigation is ongoing.
The Suez Canal chief earlier said the authorities are negotiating a financial settlement with the owners of the massive vessel. Lt. Gen. Osama Rabie told The Associated Press he hoped talks with Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd., the Japanese owner of the skyscraper-sized Ever Given, will conclude without a lawsuit.
“We are discussing with them a peaceful resolution to the matter without resorting to the judiciary,” he said. He maintained that bringing the case before a court would be more harmful to the firm than settling with the canal’s management.
The canal chief said last week the Suez Canal Authority was expecting more than $1 billion in compensation, warning the ship would not be allowed to leave the canal if the issue of damages turns into a legal dispute. He did not specify then who would be responsible for paying the compensation.
