posted Egypt Demands More Compensation for Oil Spill
EGYPT: October 6, 2006
ISMAILIA, Egypt - A Liberian tanker impounded in Egypt for spilling oil in the Suez Canal is facing more than 50 million pounds (US$8.7 million) in compensation demands, a Canal Authority official said on Thursday.
The official said that the authority would ask the owners of the P.C. Anna to pay around 30 million pounds in damages and for clean up costs.
Egypt's environmental agency has already asked for 10 million pounds in compensations, and local fisherman and tourist resort owners are demanding a further 15 million pounds in damages, bringing total claims against the tanker to 55 million pounds.
The tanker, which is listed as owned by Trade Maestro, hit the canal bank while trying to moor after a supertanker ran aground ahead of it, breaching its hull and causing it to spill about 600 tonnes of crude oil.
The oil spill covered an area three km by 400 metres (about two miles by 400 yards), and is still being cleaned up.
In September, Egypt decided to release another impounded Liberian tanker, the Grigoroussa 1, after its owners agreed to pay US$3.4 million in compensation for spilling oil in the canal.
The Grigoroussa 1 had been impounded since February, when it spilled 3,000 tonnes of oil into the waterway, causing extensive pollution and disrupting traffic.
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