Havila Kystruten has applied for a dispensation from the sanctions

Last week, the company Havila Kystruten canceled the round trip with the ship Havila Capella which has been stuck in Bergen since last Tuesday.

The round trip was scheduled for Saturday, but the ship has been stranded in Bergen for days due to the sanctions against Russia, which – according to the company – have created uncertainty about the insurance coverage (Norwegian authorities consider the ship’s insurance subject to sanctions against the Russian leasing company).

“We decided to cancel the trip a couple of days before the scheduled departure, to give our passengers the possibility to rearrange their travel plans to Bergen before they arrived. This is per se Force Majure, but we feel responsibility for our passengers, naturally,” Lasse A. Vangstein, Head of Communications at Havila Kystruten AS explained to Norway Today via e-mail.

Financial hit

While it is clear that the sanctions and related cancelation will generate unexpected costs for the company, Vangstein didn’t want to go into detail when it comes to the financial impact of the sanctions.

“I cannot go into numbers, as you probably understand. But not being able to sail will, of course, mean that we lose money,” he noted.

However, the Head of Communications at Havila Kystruten added that only the Havila Capella ship is affected by the sanctions, as it is financed through GTLK Asia, which “was one of the largest and most renowned financial institutions for ships and airplanes up to February 24, 2022.” 

“Our next ships will not be financed through GTLK,” he explained.

Cooperation with Norwegian authorities

Havila Kystruten has already applied for a dispensation from the regulations for the sanctions.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs sets the rules and regulations for the sanctions. We have applied for a dispensation and hope to get some feedback sometime this week. 

The Ministry of Transportation is of great help to us, as our agreement to sail the coast is with them,” Vangstein informed Norway Today.

He accentuated that the company is in the process of refinancing Havila Capella to “get her off sanctioned hands.”

“We hope to get a solution as soon as possible to get Havila Capella sailing again. By all means, Havila Capella is a Norwegian ship, registered in Norsk Ordinært Skipsregister (NOR), and sailing under the Norwegian flag. 

“Havila Kystruten operates the ship and is a Norwegian company. We will only sail along the Norwegian coastline, and all our employees work under Norwegian rules and legislation.

“Also, Havila Kystruten is in the process of refinancing Havila Capella to get her off sanctioned hands and into Norwegian ownership,” he concluded.

Robin-Ivan Capar is a contributor and editor at Norway Today.

Source: #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews

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