The owner of the foreign vessel Stavanger paid Ukraine $2.4 million in compensation for the spill of a hazardous substance at the Pivdenny port. This is the first case in the country where a foreign company has reimbursed damages for environmental harm.
This was reported by the press service of the Prosecutor General's Office.
"The incident occurred on April 30, 2020, at the "Pivdenny" port, where during the unloading of the vessel "STAVANGER," an uncontrolled discharge of 8.5 tons of a hazardous substance — a mixture of palm olein and stearin — was carried out. These actions grossly violated the requirements of the 1973 International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, which mandates adherence to marine environmental protection standards"
Ukraine estimated the damages at $2.41 million (64.8 million UAH at the exchange rate at that time) and filed a lawsuit against the shipowner. In 2022, the shipowner paid the first part of the compensation — 36.5 million UAH; in January 2025, the remaining balance of 28.2 million UAH was paid.
The Prosecutor General's Office noted that this is the first case in which Ukraine succeeded in proving the foreign shipowner's responsibility for environmental damage and obtaining compensation on such a scale.
