St PETERSBURG, August 29. /TASS/. The owner for The Lada Russian dry cargo carrier, moored in Port Elizabeth, the South African Republican, has received a letter from the country’s maritime authorities permitting the ship to leave the port, the director general of the St Petersburg-based owner company told TASS.
"We’ve received many letters from the agent and from the authorities saying the ship is free and can check out of the port," he said. "The only thing we’re waiting for is when a delivery agent brings officials papers with results of tests from Pretoria."
After the unloading of fourteen containers on August 25, the South African security service inspected some of the containers that remained aboard. "They unsealed some of then and took the samples of cargoes bound for the US," the director general said.
"All the tests are OK and the authorities don’t have any questions as regards the cargo," he said, adding that the company was expected to submit appropriate papers to the directorate of the port or the Port Elizabeth police.
At the time this report went on wire, the company was awaiting the completion of formalities and the issuance of transit documents for the cargo.
"We’re awaiting the transit documents because the port agent didn’t fill them out on time," the executive said. "We submitted them a week before we called into the port and he was expected to process all the papers on the transit."
The company indicated that no one had detained the ship and neither the port authorities nor the South African maritime security service had any claims against the owner.
Under the initial schedule, The Lada was to check out of Port Elizabeth and to begin a voyage to next port of debarkation located in Nigeria on August 25 or August 26.
Reports said on August 23 the South African police had detained a Russian dry cargo carrier in Port Elizabeth as it had a dangerous cargo of some kind aboard.
The owner company refuted the reports on the same day, saying the cargo was absolutely legal and the US authorities had permitted its delivery to their country.
The Lada has a 10-strong crew. It was built in 2000 in Bulgaria and waves the Russian flag. St Petersburg is its port of registration.