According to Bloomberg, the owner of the ship responsible for damaging Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, the Dali, has initiated a formal “general average” process.
A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S has confirmed that Singapore-based Grace Ocean declared the general average, indicating expectations of high salvage operation costs. This means companies with goods on the Dali will be required to share in the financial losses, Bloomberg explains.
Do you know what General Average means?
Declaring “General Average” is a practice regularly seen after a maritime casualty. General Average is a principle of maritime law that requires all sea cargo stakeholders -both the shipowner and the customers, like shippers- to evenly share any damage or losses that may occur as a result of voluntary sacrifice of part of the vessel or cargo to save the whole in an emergency.
It is basically a voluntary sacrifice of “lesser” interest in rescue of a clearly “greater” one. In simpler terms, General Average means General Loss and signifies that the carrier is not responsible for the cargo loss, but every owner of cargo onboard is actually responsible, in part, for the cargo of others, as well as the ship itself.
The Dali was on charter to Copenhagen-based Maersk with Synergy Marine acting as its manager and operator when it destroyed the bridge and blocked the port of Baltimore on March 26.
