Moroccan charterer OCP has refused to take part in a South African trial involving a bulker shipment from the disputed region of Western Sahara.
The 60,000-dwt AM Nomikos-controlled NM Cherry Blossom (built 2015) was arrested in Port Elizabeth in April by the Polisario independence movement.
It was carrying 50,000 tonnes of phosphate from Laayoune for OCP.
The South African court gave the green light to litigation by Polisario in June, keeping the ship under detention.
