KOCHI: Even as the Kerala High Court on Friday directed the Cochin Port Trust authorities not to issue clearance to the Italian tanker Enrica Lexie till Monday 5 pm, the BPCL Kochi Refinery authorities heaved a sigh of relief. For, they will have to find a berth for the next arrival of cargo only by March 1. Kochi Refinery has already paid a heavy price to the tune of Rs 1.5 crore, following the Italian vessel’s arrival here for the first time, last Friday. The demurrage was paid for making other vessels wait in Kochi for no fault of theirs for four days from February 17 to 20 when Enrica Lexie was docked at the Cochin Oil Terminal (COT).The Italian ship was allotted berth at the COT at 2 am by evacuating another tanker, Jag Prachi, which had berthed at the COT on the evening of February 16. Jag Prachi was about to start pumping furnace oil to the BPCL-KRL when she was asked to go back to the outer channel and await further orders.Another tanker Sanmar Seranade also reached Kochi on the same day. Sanmar Seranade entered the port only after Enrica Lexie was shifted to the outer harbour on Monday morning.The loss incurred to the BPCL for making the vessels wait outside the port was approximately Rs 40 Lakh per day by way of demurrage.However, both Cochin Port Trust and the Kochi Refinery authorities had made it clear they were not thinking of the loss since it was an emergency situation, that too a matter of national interest. “Though the shipping company has to pay rent for the berth, the problem is that indefinite berthing would affect our scheduled arrivals and other chartering of the shipping company,” said the port authorities.
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