Singapore’s X-Press Feeders has hit back at the Sri Lankan Supreme Court’s order to pay $1bn within a year over the 2021 X-Press Pearl casualty, warning the decision tramples on due process, scapegoats its crew, and poses a dangerous precedent for global shipping.
The feeder giant accused the court of effectively convicting the vessel’s master and local agents before trials have concluded — in some cases, before charges have even been filed. The master, stranded in Sri Lanka for four-and-a-half years under a court-imposed travel ban, has been separated from his family and unable to work despite offering to post the maximum fine possible for his charges.
“The judgment holds him and the agents as human collateral to ensure the compliance of the owners and operators,” the company said, claiming they were given no opportunity to respond to allegations in court.
The X-Press Pearl — a brand new 2,700 teu feeder vessel — sank off Colombo in June 2021 after a fire broke out in a container carrying leaking nitric acid. The incident caused Sri Lanka’s worst-ever marine pollution disaster, spilling hundreds of tonnes of plastic pellets onto the country’s beaches. While X-Press Feeders has paid more than $150m for wreck removal, nurdle clean-up, and compensation to fishermen, the environmental and political fallout has raged for more than four years.
The operator argues the court’s ruling ignores a series of failings by Sri Lankan authorities. It points to official inspections of the ship days before the fire that raised “no alarm,” as well as the refusal of ports in Qatar, India, and Sri Lanka to offload the leaking container before the blaze.
The court acknowledged the Marine Environment Protection Authority’s then-chair failed to order the vessel offshore — a move X-Press Feeders says would have minimised the damage — but assigned no liability.
From the start, Colombo has signalled its intent to pursue one of the largest environmental claims in shipping history. In 2021, Sri Lanka’s attorney general initiated criminal proceedings against the master, chief engineer, and local agents. The $1bn order now sets a new bar for interim compensation in a maritime case, a level X-Press Feeders warns “most shipping companies will struggle to meet.”
For a carrier that has called Colombo for more than 40 years, the company says the judgment risks pricing out trade and raising costs for Sri Lankan importers and exporters. It is now urging “rational decision-making” that balances environmental restoration with the economic needs of the country’s population — and respects international maritime law.
