10 years since the Hebei Spirit

7 December 2017 marked the 10th anniversary of the Hebei Spirit incident which occurred off the west coast of Republic of Korea, spilling some 10 900 tonnes of crude oil into the sea and heavily polluting the Taean peninsula and nearby islands. This incident has become the largest spill in the history of the IOPC Funds in terms of claims for compensation, with over 127 000 claims submitted.
As a result of the excellent cooperation between the Government of the Republic of Korea, the Skuld Club and the IOPC Funds, after 10 years, 99.9% of the claims have been settled, and the remaining claims are expected to be finalised in the near future. The Korean courts, following the 1992 Fund’s admissibility criteria, have achieved resolution of most claims in a relatively short period of time given the magnitude of the incident.
The total amount available for compensation under the 1992 Fund Convention for this incident is KRW 321.6 billion and as at 7 December 2017, the Skuld Club had paid up to the 1992 CLC limit (KRW 186.8 billion), and the 1992 Fund had paid some KRW 107 billion. Further information is available under the Incidents section.