In Response to the Statement Issued by the UK P&I Club
The Navigation Book of Rules is Legal Reference for the Suez Canal Authority Concerning its Rights and Obligations Towards its Clients.
The SCA negotiating committee responsible for managing the negotiations and legal aspects in the case of the Panamanian-flagged container ship EVER GIVEN reviewed the statement of the UK P&I Club, and the Suez Canal Authority appreciates what was mentioned in the statement on the Authority’s right to claim a fair and commensurate compensation covering the expenses of the salvage works, salvage reward, and losses that the SCA incurred during the successful salvage operation of the Panamanian-flagged container ship EVER GIVEN which ran aground in the Canal last March.
In this regard, the SCA reassures its keenness to make the negotiations course a success acting on the principle of good faith and considering the extended ties and relations with the ship-owning company as it is one of the SCA’s major clients without jeopardizing the rights of the SCA and guaranteeing to reach a fair settlement that compensates the losses incurred during the crisis.
The SCA stresses that the SCA’s Navigation Book of Rules is the legal reference stipulating the SCA’s rights and obligations towards its clients. The Navigation Book of Rules contains the rules of navigation in the Canal as well as the articles specifying the different obligations and requirements of transit for the vessels in the canal with regards to marine, logistic, and salvage services.
It is worth noting that Article 58 of the Navigation Book of Rues concerning the assignment of escorting tugs stipulates that the SCA shall assign two escorting tugs to the container ships with a load of 170 thousand tons and above; which was applied by the SCA through assigning two escorting tugs to the Panamanian-flagged vessel EVER GIVEN. Article 54 of the Navigation Book of Rules stipulates the allowed speed for the vessels in the waterway which ranges from 14 to 16 km per hour according to the type of the transiting vessel. According to the aforementioned, the vessels shall comply with the stated speed in accordance with the Navigation Book of Rules when transiting the Canal; and exceeding these speeds is the sole responsibility of the ship master.
Source : SCA
