Monday, 4 April 2022
A tanker owned by Sideral Denizcilik, which has brought fuel to Kib-Tek, is lying off the Teknecik power plant dock, but will not unload its cargo of fuel because the government cannot pay for the fuel, Kibris Postasi reported.
Meanwhile there is a penalty, known as demurrage, owing to the company supplying the fuel of US$17,000 per day because it cannot be offloaded as the government cannot pay the one million dollars [14,703,000 TL] owed for the fuel.
Sidereal Denizcilik, who made a late delivery of the fuel to Teknecik for the second time in violation of the terms of the contract, owes a total fine of US$698,977 dollars.
One of the alternatives on the table is that the Kib-Tek Board of Directors makes a settlement.
Further Power Cuts Likely
To add to the problem, the cargo is 6,000 tonnes of fuel, enough to last the country for 10 days. Leaving the fuel on the tanker risks serious environmental damage because the tanker bringing the fuel is over 20 years old, which is against specifications.
However, the Council of Ministers took an “indefinite” decision, while it should have taken a “one-off” decision under pressure from Sideral, the company in question.
The tanker carries serious environmental risks in both transportation and unloading operations.
Previously, purchases were made in accordance with the specification that the fuel was delivered by 12-tonne tankers.
While large vessels are at risk of accidents due to the lack of appropriate port facilities, smaller vessels – 6-tonne lighters, are at greater risk because they are smaller and more likely to bob around in the water while taking fuel from the larger tanker.
The current situation is virtually an invitation for an accident to occur, Kibris Postasi writes.
