Maritime court to settle Cilacap pollution

Maritime court to settle Cilacap pollution

CILACAP, Central Java (JP): The local government is
considering filing a lawsuit in the Maritime Court or
International Maritime Court against a Singaporean company for
financial and environmental losses resulting from an oil spill.

State oil company Pertamina spokesman Husni Banser said on
Tuesday that the local government had set up a special team to
prepare the lawsuit.

"The team was formed to thoroughly investigate the case,
because many parties have blamed Pertamina for it," Husni said.

An estimated 4,000 barrels of crude oil was spilled into the
sea after the MT Fisher fuel tanker -- carrying 600,000 barrels
of crude oil -- hit a reef on April 1.

The accident took place at about 3:05 p.m, shortly before the
tanker arrived at the Pertamina-owned Cilacap oil refinery from
Tanjung Santan in East Kalimantan.

Husni said the team was also tasked to assess the loss and the
impact of the oil spill on the local environment.

"We expect to completely calculate the total loss within a
week," Husni said, adding that the accident cost the state
company US$100,000, based on the current crude oil price of $25
per barrel.

Husni said that some 6,000 local fishermen had already been
deployed and they were paid Rp 30,000 a day to clean up the
spill.

Thousands of fishermen have also demanded that Pertamina pay
Rp 630,000 each in compensation for halting their activities for
an estimated three months.

Fishermen who fish in the Cilacap waters said they had not
caught a single fish over the past two weeks as the spill had not
yet been properly handled. (45/byg)