The Hanjin Vienna is expected to leave Constance Bank in a couple of days for port in Vancouver, where it will take on supplies and change some of its crew before returning to anchor off Victoria again.
This 279-metre-long container ship and its 24 crew members are caught in the midst of financial and legal troubles facing Hanjin Shipping Co., of South Korea.
The Vienna was arrested as creditors moved against its parent company. As a result, it has been waiting at anchor at Constance Bank since leaving Vancouver on Sept. 1, its owners unable to pay for docking fees.
Another Hanjin vessel, the Scarlet, was arrested as well in B.C. and is anchored near Prince Rupert. The Vienna and Scarlet are believed to be among more than 30 Hanjin vessels in a similar predicament around the globe.
Robert Lewis-Manning, president of the Chamber of Shipping in B.C., said in a Monday statement: “I expect that the ship [Vienna] will proceed to Vancouver in the next couple of days and spend two days refuelling, embarking provisions, and changing-out half of the crew.
“Once that is complete, it will likely proceed back to anchor at Constance Bank until its legal obligations are met. It sounds as if the crew is doing all right despite the uncertainty.”
Lewis-Manning has been in direct contact with the ship’s owner and its captain. There is food, water and fresh provisions on board.
In South Korea, a bankruptcy court has ordered Hanjin Shipping Co. to send its chartered vessels back to their owners. The company was also told to sell as many of its own ships as it can, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.
