The 15,500-teu Emma Maersk (built 2006) arrived at Fincantieri’s repair yard in Palermo, Sicily on
Monday according to Fairmount Marine.
The
ship left Port Said in Egypt on Sunday February 17 under the tow of the tug
Fairmount Alpine for the 1,300 mile voyage.
On
1 February the Emma Maersk’s engine room flooded during a Suez Canal transit
with the cause linked to the failure of stern thruster propeller blades, which
cracked steelwork, damaging the watertight integrity of the ship.
At
the time of the incident the Fairmount Alpine just happened to be in the
eastern Mediterranean area and was promptly mobilized to Port Said.
Immediate
repairs to the ship were carried out in Port Said, but the full extent of
damage to the engines will now be assessed once the ship has been drydocked.
Earlier
this month Maersk Line’s head of ship management, Palle Laursen, said the once the
ship gets to the repair facility it will still be several months before repairs
are completed.
Maersk Line says that it has been able to reorganise its fleet without chartering
replacement tonnage for the damaged ship.
The
9,660-teu 48Y-Butterfly is replacing Emma Maersk on the AE10 Asia-Europe
service until she is ready to re-enter service.
TradeWinds
recently reported that the engine room flooding is expected to not only hit
hull, cargo and P&I but also impact on reinsurers.
The
ship’s underwriters are said to be steeling themselves for a big insurance
claim despite Maersk retaining a substantial amount of hull risk since the
start of last year.
The
insurance
market is anticipating a big general average claim, although this has not yet been
declared.
The Emma Maersk has P&I and freight,
demurrage and defence cover from the Britannia Club.
