KRASNODAR, March 10. /TASS/. The ship owners of the Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 tankers, which sank off the coast of the Kerch Strait, have initiated the creation of funds by more than 533 million rubles ($6.03 mln) each to pay compensation to the Federal State Budgetary Institution Morspassluzhba (the Marine Rescue Service) and other potential plaintiffs.

Representatives of the companies Volgatransneft CJSC and Kamatransoil LLC filed a corresponding petition with the court.

After the tankers sank, the Marine Rescue Service filed a lawsuit against the ship owners of the Volgoneft-212 tanker, Kama Shipping LLC and Kamatransoil LLC.

Third parties in the lawsuit are VSK Insurance Company and Volgatransneft CJSC, the company that owns Volgoneft-239. On Monday, a preliminary court hearing was held in the Arbitration Court of the Krasnodar Region.

"The main petition is to create a fund to limit the liability of the owner of the vessel, this institution is a security measure in the interests of the plaintiff, as well as other persons who suffered damage or may suffer damage as a result of the incident on December 15, 2024," said a representative of Volgatransneft CJSC.

"Based on the technical parameters of the vessel, a limit of liability of the owners of the vessel was determined, which is 4 million 510 conventional units on the day of the creation of the fund. In ruble equivalent this is more than 533 million rubles," the official added.

A representative of the co-defendants Kama Shipping and Kamatransoil also filed a petition to create an identical fund with the same amount of financing, that is, another 533 million rubles. The company representative explained that the creation of such a fund is provided for by the Merchant Shipping Code as an institution for protecting the interests of all persons who may suffer from an oil spill. Volgatransneft has a guarantee from Russian National Reinsurance Company JSC for the fund.

It is noted that the amount of the guarantee significantly exceeds the amount of the claims of the procedural opponent. Such a guarantee will be valid until December 16, 2030, taking into account the limitation period for claims for compensation for damage from pollution, which is three years from the date of damage, but not more than six years from the date of the incident.

According to the representative of the co-defendants, the creation of this fund will be aimed at protecting the interests of not only the plaintiff in this civil dispute, but also other persons who may become potential participants in the litigation and apply to the court for compensation for damage later.

About emergency

On December 15, 2024, the Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 tankers sank in the Kerch Strait area in the Black Sea amid a storm. One sailor died, and the rest were evacuated. According to emergency services, the tankers were carrying about 9,200 tons of fuel oil. An oil spill occurred in the Black Sea as a result of the accident, and clean-up operations are ongoing.

According to the Russian Ministry of Transport, about 2,400 tons of oil products have leaked into the Black Sea, much less than initially estimated.

On December 26, a federal level state of emergency was introduced due to the oil spill.