Sri Lanka Orders Singapore Cargo Ship Owner to Pay $1 Billion Compensation for Massive Marine Pollution July

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📰 Sri Lanka Orders Singapore Cargo Ship Owner to Pay $1 Billion Compensation for Massive Marine Pollution
🗓️ July 25, 2025
📍 Colombo, Sri Lanka

📄Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court has ordered the owner of a Singapore-flagged cargo ship to pay $1 billion in compensation for the worst marine pollution disaster in the country’s history. The ship, MV Express Pearl, caught fire and sank off the coast of Sri Lanka four years ago, causing widespread environmental and economic damage.

The ruling came during a court hearing involving environmental groups and fishermen who filed lawsuits against the ship owner, Sea Consortium Lanka, and its Singapore representatives. The court mandated that the compensation must be fully paid by next year.

The Supreme Court described the incident as a catastrophic marine pollution event, which severely impacted Sri Lanka’s ocean ecosystem and devastated the livelihoods of local fishing communities.

The disaster caused the deaths of 417 sea turtles, 48 dolphins, 8 whales, and numerous fish washed ashore, alongside tons of plastic debris including microplastics used in plastic bag production.

The court emphasized that this environmental disaster represents “the largest plastic spill in the world” and warned that the damage to Sri Lanka’s marine environment will persist.

MV Express Pearl was carrying 81 containers of chemicals when the fire broke out near Colombo in June 2021. The blaze lasted approximately two weeks.

The ship owner promptly apologized to Sri Lanka following the accident and paid $7.85 million to aid cleanup efforts and support affected fishermen.

Authorities attribute the fire to the owner’s failure to properly address a nitric acid leak discovered by the crew nine days before the fire.

There has been no immediate response from the ship owner or Singaporean representatives regarding the Supreme Court ruling.

This landmark ruling is likely to influence future maritime safety regulations and environmental liability cases, emphasizing accountability for marine pollution and its long-term impacts on ecosystems and coastal economies.

Monitoring the implementation of the compensation payment and ongoing environmental recovery efforts will be critical in assessing Sri Lanka’s path toward marine restoration.

🔗 Reported from Colombo – World News Environmental Desk

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