What Crew Members Say About Busse

In a significant legal development, the Arbitration Court of the Sakhalin Region has granted interim measures requested by Sakhalin Energy LLC, resulting in the arrest of four Svitzer tugboats: 'Svitzer Aniva', 'Svitzer Sakhalin', 'Svitzer Busse', and 'Svitzer Korsakov'. This ruling, dated April 24, 2023, pertains to the tugboats owned by Svitzer Sakhalin B.V. that are vital for the ongoing Sakhalin-2 project. While the tugboats are under arrest, they are permitted to conduct bunkering operations and carry passengers within the port of Prigorodnoye, restricted to Russia's territorial waters. These vessels have been entrusted to Sip Management for operational use. The court's decision comes in the wake of a charter agreement signed in September 2012 between the Sakhalin Energy Investment Company Ltd. (formerly the operator of the Sakhalin-2 project) and Svitzer Sakhalin Terminal Towage LLC. The tugboats in question, under a bareboat charter, were assigned to Svitzer Sakhalin from Svitzer Sakhalin B.V., headquartered in the Netherlands. Following a trilateral contract novation in November 2022, all rights and responsibilities previously held by the SEIC were transitioned to the current operator, Sakhalin Energy. However, on April 17, 2023, Svitzer Sakhalin announced the immediate suspension of the contract, citing force majeure. This was attributed to a notification from Svitzer regarding an impending termination of bareboat charters, changes to the vessels' flags, and their planned relocation from Russian waters. The court emphasized that the interim measures were essential to ensure Sakhalin Energy's continued access to the tugs, facilitating ongoing operations of the Sakhalin-2 project. This ruling is effective immediately, although it remains open to appeal within a month. The Sakhalin Energy LLC has been operational since August 19, 2022. This operator now assumes all previous rights and obligations, including the workforce that was associated with Sakhalin-2, which was historically managed by Sakhalin Energy Investment Company Ltd., registered in the Bermuda Islands with stakeholders Gazprom (50%), Shell (27.5%), Mitsui (12.5%), and Mitsubishi (10%). Notably, Sakhalin-2 is recognized as Russia's inaugural LNG plant, with an impressive production capacity of approximately 11.5 million tonnes annually, utilizing natural gas sourced from the Piltun-Astokhskoye and Lungskoye fields located on the Sakhalin shelf.