Read More

MSC Ends “ANASTASIA” Cargo Ship Ordeal With Crew Change in Japan

GENEVA, SWITZ / ACCESSWIRE, Feb 9, 2021 - (ACN Newswire) - Following months of repeated appeals by MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company to allow a change of crew on ANASTASIA, a cargo ship which had been stuck off the coast of China since September, MSC has effectively resolved the matter, avoided a humanitarian crisis onboard and mitigated the related safety risks.MSC, which maintains the vessel and organises its crew, having exhausted all possible options for crew change including efforts at a diplomatic level between Indian and Chinese authorities, was left with no other option but to advise the master of ANASTASIA to make a short hop to Japan on 4 February after already grave concerns for the safety and well-being of the seafarers intensified.Dozens of ships have been stuck off the coast of China in recent months amid a trade dispute, which has created uncertainty over whether cargo merchants could deliver coal to buyers in China. MSC understands that the company which initially chartered ANASTASIA from MSC had sub-chartered the vessel to a third party and that the commercial parties involved in the selling and buying of the cargo onboard were caught in the ensuing political unce...