Suez Canal Authority - Owner Of Ever Given Still Bargain Fines

JAKARTA - The owner of the giant container ship The Ever Given, which ran aground and blocked Egypt's Suez Canal for a week on March 23, has submitted a new bid in a compensation dispute with canal authorities.

With these negotiations still ongoing, the court's ruling on the case was postponed for two weeks from Sunday to give both sides more time to negotiate.

The giant container ship Ever Given has been 'caged' in a lake between two stretches of canal since being refloated on March 29. The ship ran aground in the Suez Canal for six days, blocking hundreds of ships and disrupting global trade.

The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) is demanding $916 million in compensation to cover rescue efforts, reputational damage, and lost revenue, before publicly lowering the demand to $550 million or around Rp7,96 trillion.

Japan's Ever Given container ship owner Shoei Kisen and his insurance company have disputed the ship's claim and detention under an Egyptian court order.

Negotiations have been ongoing until Saturday and the ship's owner has made a new offer, SCA lawyer Khaled Abu Bakr told a court hearing over the ship's detention in Ismailia.

"For more than 15 days and in a long, long, and difficult but positive working session, negotiations are ongoing," said Stann Marine, who represents owner and insurance company Ever Given.

"During the negotiations, we put forward a proposal that we believe meets all the requirements of the SCA," he continued, adding that details would remain confidential.

Separately, the SCA chairman previously said Shoei Kisen had offered to pay a fine of $150 million. This week the UK P&I Club, a ship insurer, said it hoped there would be a positive resolution to these negotiations in the near future.

Originally, the court's ruling was scheduled for Sunday after several delays. However, Stann Marine said it had asked for a delay. Judicial sources said the case was adjourned to July 4 to allow an amicable settlement.

To note, in the aftermath of the protracted negotiation process and the legal aground of the container ship The Ever Given, thousands of goods worth hundreds of millions of US dollars are still stuck on board the ship. During the legal process, the container ship The Ever Given and its cargo was detained in Great Bitter Lake, a canal on the Suez Canal.