In Perusahaan Perseroan (Persero) PT Pertamina v Trevaskis Ltd (The Star Centurion and The Antea) – [2022] HKCA 1089 a collision occurred between the “Antea” and the “Star Centurion”, a vessel at anchor in Indonesian waters. The Star Centurion sank and the authorities issued a wreck removal order. The claimant, the owner of the “Antea”, established a limitation fund in Hong Kong and paid HK$175,062,000 into court. The wreck removal claims were HK$139 million and growing.
The claimant issued a summons seeking a declaration that that part of the defendant’s claim for damages, in respect of the raising, removal, destruction or the rendering harmless of the “Star Centurion” was subject to limitation under article 2 of the 1976 Convention and under the limitation fund constituted by the claimant. Article 2 (d) of LLMC specifically covers wreck removal claims but Article 18(1) allows a contracting party to disapply it through a reservation. The UK has made such a reservation, and so has Hong Kong.
The claimant argued that the wreck removal claims could be limited as they fell within art 2(1)(a) “claims in respect of loss of life or personal injury or loss of or damage to property (including damage to harbour works, basins and waterways and aids to navigation), occurring on board or in direct connection with the operation of the ship or with salvage operations, and consequential loss resulting therefrom”; and also 2(1)(c) “claims in respect of other loss resulting from infringement of rights other than contractual rights, occurring in direct connection with the operation of the ship or salvage operations;”
The Hong Kong Court of Appeal has recently upheld the first instance decision [2021] HKCFI 396 that the wreck removal claims were excluded from limitation by virtue of the reservation in respect of article 2(d). Claims under this head encompassed direct claims by statutory authorities, whether under statute or at common law, and private recourse claims by shipowners for consequential loss or damage to property or resulting from the infringement of rights. There could be no “partial reservation” under article 18(1) in excluding the application of article 2(1)(d) only as regards claims by waterway authorities and not to recourse claims by shipowners. Although wreck removal claims fell within articles 2(1)(a) and (c), general provisions should give way to the specific terms of article 2(1)(d) where the claim was for wreck removal costs.
The Hong Kong Court of Appeal in reaching this conclusion referred to majority obiter dicta of the Full Court of Queensland in The Tiruna and Pelorus [1987] 2 Lloyd’s Rep 666 and to the decision of the Supreme Court of the Netherland in Shipping Co MS Amasus BV v ELG Haneil Trading GmbH. It is likely that a UK court would come to the same decision.
