Admiralty Lawyer

Officials from South Korea’s Maritime Ministry said Saturday that they do not intend to tighten rules on single-hulled oil tankers following the disaster that took place Friday.

Friday, the very large crude carrier (VLCC) Hebei Spirit was struck by a barge while waiting to unload its cargo and ended up releasing 10,500 tonnes of crude oil into the water. That is about 1/3 as much oil as was released by the Valdez off of the coast of Alaska. It is roughly twice as much oil as was released in another oil spill accident off of the coast of South Korea in 1995. The 1995 spill cost the South Korean government 96 billion won to clean up.

43% of all crude oil delivered to South Korea comes in single-hulled tankers. The government does not plan to tighten regulations because there is already a constant need for tankers. Despite this, they will go along with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) plan to remove single-hulled tankers from service by 2010.

The IMO’s plan was adopted in 2003 and calls for replacing all single-hulled oil tankers with double-hull tankers by 2010. There are a few exceptions that have until 2015 to be removed from service. This provision, while it exists, is extremely limited. Europe has also bought into this plan and has gone one step further in attempting to get all ships over 15 years of age out of the habit of bringing crude oil to Europe’s shores. 

If you or someone you know has been injured at sea, there may be legal options available. Contact the Admiralty Lawyers of Williams Kherkher at 1-866-950-9000 to discuss your legal options and to schedule a free initial consultation.