MSC ELSA 3

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Call for action by MSC

Citizen groups, including Greenpeace India, along with environmental groups, legal experts and fishermen bodies have called for an urgent and enforceable action by the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) regarding the sinking of the 'MSC Elsa 3'. In a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram on July 28, the citizen groups released a comprehensive white paper outlining the potential ecological and socio-economic impacts of the shipwreck. They demanded that the company be held fully accountable. The MSC company has denied its responsibility and refused to pay I9,531 crore compensation demanded by the state government and they claimed that there was no significant ecological damage from the shipwreck. The document also outlined the severe livelihood disruptions for fisherfolk, and growing concerns over marine biodiversity. The citizens groups demanded that the company support an independent environmental and social impact assessment and roll out a comprehensive compensation package that reflects the magnitude of the damage. The shipwreck has significantly affected over 10 lakh fisherfolk in Kerala, especially in the wake of early monsoon weather restrictions and the 20-nautical-mile fishing ban period following the accident, with serious consequences on daily income, food security, and occupational health.

First hearing related to compensation claim

The Kerala High Court in India held its first hearing related to India’s nearly $1.1 billion compensation claim related to the sinking of the 'MSC Elsa 3'. The MSC’s lawyers called the claims “highly exaggerated,” while lawyers for the state government said the extent of the damages is “incalculable and continuing.” MSC was arguing that the state provided no evidence to support its claims, while it reiterated that there has been no significant oil leak from the vessel. It was highlighted that the oil sheen around the vessel was limited to within one nautical mile of the wreck. The state countered by saying that the recovery of plastic nurdles continues on a daily basis with reports that it has now reached 450 tonnes. The clean-up is ongoing and in part delayed by discussions over the best methods to be used. One local area is barring the use of seawater washing to separate the nurdles, although the authorities contend it has proven effective elsewhere on the coastline. The court papers also said that nearly 78,500 fishermen have been compensated for the loss of their livelihood. They contend the fish market has collapsed due to a lack of confidence. The fishermen received a financial award as well as a distribution of free rice. The state was successful at the court earlier in the week in having the containership 'MSC Akiteta II' detained pending the posting of a bond. The company argued for the release of the vessel while declining to post a bond. The state cites the ownership structure of the vessels in independent companies, contending that it is “highlighting a pattern of deliberate corporate structure to defeat potential claims.” The court ruled that the vessel, which has been detained in Vizhinjam port, has to remain in the port until a bond is posted. The court had previously briefly detained two other MSC vessels, the 'MSC Manasa F' and the 'MSC Polo II', during their local port calls until bonds were posted for cases involving private claims related to the loss of the vessel. The state was given two weeks to file additional supporting information for its claims, while MSC also asked for time to respond to the claims. The court scheduled a follow-up hearing about the detention and the claims for Aug 6. In the court papers, the state highlighted that the vessel was loaded with 643 containers when it went down, with reports that approximately 60 have washed ashore. Based on the manifests, they contend the wreck is releasing plastic pellets, oil, calcium carbonate, and other materials into the ocean. The Directorate General of Shipping, which is overseeing the salvage efforts, said in its recent report that there remains an intermittent oil sheen near the wreck, but divers in June capped the tank ports that had been seeping oil. A new salvage program with saturation diving is due to begin in August in an effort to pump the oil from the vessel, which lies at a depth of 167 feet.

Smit Salvage to continue operations at wreck after cancellation of contract

Salvage operations at the 'MSC Elsa 3' are due to be launched in August or when the weather conditions become favourable by Smit Salvage. The Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), has submitted an action plan in this regard. They have not yet arrived in Kochi, but have informed the Mercantile Marine Department (MMD) on July 4, that they will arrive with all support facilities when the turbulence ends. Meanwhile, a team from the MSC shipping company was staying in Kochi. The captain and the crew members were also still staying in Kochi. The MMD principal officer, who is investigating the safety lapses behind the incident, has submitted an interim report to the DG Shipping and is waiting for the recovery of the voice data recorder to complete the probe. The MSC had decided to cancel the contract with the T&T Salvage as it lacked facilities for the operations and was seeking help from the Kochi port and the Coast Guard for the operations, which raised doubts that they were lacking the technical facility to conduct the salvage operations,