Oil on MT Strovolos Belongs to Cambodia, not KrisEnergy or Others, says Mines Ministry

• 30 September 2021
• Local News
• 1527 Views

The Ministry of Mines and Energy claims that all the crude oil on board the MT Strovolos legally belongs to the Kingdom of Cambodia at all times and does not belong to any parties, stating that all parties must stop making demands and return the oil to Cambodia.

The claim is in response to a statement from World Tankers Management (WTM), a company that manages the MT Strovolos, who said that ownership of the oil remains uncertain, so by law, it has no obligation to return to Cambodia or give the oil to Cambodia.

The firm also stated that the Cambodian government has not provided any evidence that it owns the oil on board. Given so plus its payment issues with KrisEnergy, MT Strovolos decided to leave Cambodia with nearly 300,000 barrels of oil. (Read more)

In response, the ministry issued a four-page statement on 30 September saying that Cambodia had notified WTM of its ownership of crude oil and violations of Cambodian laws a few months ago.

“MT Strovolos not only refuses to return the oil to Cambodia but also travelled to many ports in Thailand and Indonesia,” read the Ministry’s statement.

The ministry said MT Strovolos also continued to shut down the ship’s automatic identification system for a long time and left Cambodian waters without permission, which is illegal.

The crude oil may not be the subject of a claim by the shipowner and operator of MT Strovolos, as the crude oil does not belong to KrisEnergy, the ministry underlined.

“As stated, the crude oil is the property of Cambodia. None of the claims under the lease agreement can justify or allow the MT Strovolos to leave Cambodian waters illegally or allow violating the crude oil ownership of Cambodia,” the ministry said in the statement.

The Ministry of Mines and Energy claimed on 30 September that the stolen US$21 million of crude oil on the MT Strovolos legally belongs to Cambodia, denying the news and declaration in the statement of the owners and managers of vessel.

Not only did not take any action to return the oil to Cambodia, but they also traveled to many ports in Thailand and Indonesia, read the statement, citing that they turned off the automatic identification system of the ship for a long time as they travelled, including when leaving Cambodian waters without permission, leaving Thai waters and entering Indonesian waters.

When the MT Strovolos left Cambodian waters illegally, it was being leased by KrisEnergy, a company granted to develop the Cambodian oil field, ministry said, adding that disputes between the ship owner and the ship manager and KrisEnergy regarding the lease of the ship may have occurred, but that issue did not relate to the Kingdom of Cambodia.

Additionally, the ministry said that arrangement of the return of the crude oil to the legal owner, the Kingdom of Cambodia, should be made, and requested that the owner and managers of the MT Strovolos should abandon any attempts to demand money from the Kingdom of Cambodia for their disputes with KrisEnergy.

The stolen crude oil case occurred after the KrisEnergy announced bankruptcy in July, six months after official crude oil drill production made in late of December last year.

The ministry’s remarks were made after World Tankers Management, owner of the MT Strovolos accused Indonesia on Monday 27 September of violating the human rights of their crew through interrogations made in an intervention at the request of the Cambodian government.

• Energy and Environment