KARACHI, 8 November 2003 — Pakistani port authorities yesterday said they would sell off wreckage of a broken Greek oil tanker to clean their port channel after the insurers ignored their notices to foot the bill.
The decision followed a court verdict authorizing port authorities to remove the broken ship to clear the port channel as well as recovering the salvage cost, lawyer for state-run Karachi Port Trust Shaiq Usmani told reporters.
Bickering among foreign stakeholders over the removal of the Greek-registered ship responsible for the worst oil slick ever in Pakistani waters had left the ship’s fate in limbo after it ran aground on July 27.
The MV Tasman Spirit, managed by the Greek company Polembros Shipping, broke apart on Aug. 14 outside the Arabian Sea port of Karachi, around a fortnight after running aground in a shallow channel.
It leaked 28,000 tons of crude oil into Karachi coastal waters, destroying young mangroves and littering the beaches with dead fish and turtles.
The 24-year-old 87,584-ton hulk was awaiting removal, but differences over who should bear costs among the owners, the salvager and the ship’s insurers, the Protection and Indemnity (PI) Club of America, caused delay in the effort.
“It (removal) was the responsibility of PI and we sent them notices repeatedly but they did not respond and we then moved the court, which has granted permission to us for its removal,” KPT general manager Brig. Jamshed Rizvi said. The removal operation would cost around $8 million.
Rizvi added that port authorities obtained quotes from two salvaging companies and were awaiting another quote from a Chinese firm and expected to salvage and auction the ship in the next month. The wreckage posed a hazard to ships heading in and out of the port.
