Gard has won a High Court judgment in London to freeze up to $58m of assets of the 1971 International Oil Pollution Compensation (IOPC) Fund.

The ruling means the Norwegian P&I club has won the first round in what is expected to be a long-running legal battle in the English courts over a relatively modest oil spill by the 86,400-dwt Nissos Amorgos (built 1988) in Venezuela 17 years ago.

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