Suez Canal Authority head denies waiving compensation rights in confidential deal with Ever Green insurer

CAIRO – 7 July 2021: Head of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) Osama Rabie held a press conference on Wednesday as Ever Given ship left the waterway after striking a confidential deal with the insurance company.

Rabie was pressed by journalists on whether he waived SCA’s rights to maintain good relations with Ever Given and its owners, but he reiterated that SCA has taken fair compensation while preserving its partners and clients.

SCA first demanded compensation of $916 million in losses and salvation costs incurred after Ever Given ran aground for six days.  It reduced its claim twice, most recently in May when it said it demanded $550 million. The deal involves an amount of money and a tug boat. 

“We have taken our rights after the ordeal of Ever Given ordeal, and many partners and entities still praise our salvage works to this day,” Rabie told reporters. He thanked Ever Given, calling it a "respectable company."

He reiterated the SCA’s position on the issue, saying that the SCA's statute entails that the ships crossing Suez Canals are the responsibilities of their captains, and that the SCA pilot's role are consultative.

He added that some captains decide not to cross the Suez Canal if they find the weather too rough for their ships, and that 12 large container ships crossed right before Every Given under the same weather conditions.

The capacity of the Suez Canal allows the crossing of the largest container ships worldwide, he emphasized, saying that the SCA’s standards have not changed because they are the highest standards for waterways already, but the SCA continued to improve itself and raise the bar. He added that winches and tug boats will join the top-notch equipment of the SCA while the widening of the canal is underway using SCA's existing equipment. 

Negotiations lasted for a long time to bring viewpoints closer and find a solution deemed appropriate by the two sides, Rabie said.

He also said that politics do not interfere in the work of SCA, and that all ships are treated equally no matter where they are from. He also noted that no pollution occurred in the Suez Canal during the salvage and samples have been taken from the water at different depths to make sure.