The captain of a general cargo ship that had been stranded for six months in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, after its owner failed to pay the port for damages, tried to escape by disembarking on September 18 without permission.
The Chinese captain was arrested by police and returned to the 8,400 dwt vessel Uniprofit built in 1995. The 16 crew, 11 Chinese and five Indonesians remain stranded on Uniprofit as the owner has yet to respond to a Taiwanese court order to pay approximately US$1.91 million in towing costs after the vessel ran aground in waters off Fugang fishing port in Taitung County on March 8.
The Uniprofit owner hired a Taiwanese salvage company to tow the ship to Kaohsiung, where it has been since March 22.
However, the shipowner failed to pay for the towing service, causing the salvage company to seek Uniprofit’s arrest. Under the court order, the ship’s crew are required to remain on board, although the ship’s agent continues to provide daily necessities to sailors.
At the time of its grounding, Uniprofit was transporting 149 containers from Yantai, China to Bahodopi, Indonesia.
Databases indicate that Uniprofit is owned by Sinounion Shipping Services registered in Hong Kong.
Frustrated by their detention, crew members hung a white banner on the ship in June, expressing their wish to return home.
However, Uniprofit could not be released until its owner settled its towing arrears.
Taiwan’s Maritime and Port Bureau said it had asked the courts to appoint a receiver for the vessel, so the crew could disembark.
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