Authorities in Vietnam's Quang Ngai province have ordered a large cargo ship to be detained for 30 days after it struck the deep-water pier of Hoa Phat Group, Vietnam's largest steel producer.
The provincial maritime authority said it was strictly implementing the detention order for the Aquacharm, a 292-metre cargo vessel with 22 crew members from the Philippines, South Korea and Japan.
The incident occurred on October 18. The vessel, carrying 170,586 tonnes of iron ore from Port Hedland in Australia, had arrived at Vietnam's Dung Quat Port on October 14 before colliding with Hoa Phat Group's pier.
No deaths, injuries or oil spills were reported, but the collision caused serious damage to the vessel's bow and the pier's structure.
As the affected party, Hoa Phat Group formally asked the court to detain the vessel and sought approximately 2 billion Vietnamese dong, equivalent to about US$77,000, in initial compensation.
Text: Rithy
