A $1bn compensation claim from the loss of the tanker Prestige is far from over, the director of the International Oil Pollution Compensation (IOPC) Funds has warned.

The casualty of the 81,500-dwt Prestige (built 1976) will continue to be a difficult, challenging case, Jose Maura says in the IOPC Funds’ annual review.

The $1bn claim, against the London Steam-Ship Owners’ ­Mutual Insurance Association, arises from judgments by the Spanish ­Supreme Court and the Audiencia Provincial court in La Coruna.