THE OWNERS of the Safmarine Agulhas, which ran aground off East London on June 28, have declared General Average (GA). This is an unwritten, non-statutory international maritime law that requires all parties with interests in a maritime endeavour, including ship owner and owners of cargo, to contribute proportionately to save the ship and its cargo. In these circumstances it is customary for customers to arrange a GA guarantee or cash deposit to release their cargo from the ship owner’s custody and to contribute to GA. “However, Safmarine has decided to provide both salvage and general average security on our customers’ behalf,” a spokesman told FTW. Safmarine will pay its customers’ share of any salvage award and any contribution that they may be required to make in GA.
