Reefership arrested in Auckland

The 1992-built reefership Annapurna, arrested by Tokyo-based Aozora Bank, is subject to a separate US$136,000 lawsuit filed in New York by Bunkers International over an unpaid fuel bill before Eastwind went into Chapter 7 liquidation.

Aozora Bank, however, was able to pounce on the ship after she berthed in Auckland on Monday.

The level of debt owed to Aozora Bank against the Annapurna has not been made public.

Maritime unions in New Zealand, which intervened to help the seafarers on board Annapurna, told local media that the 23 Burmese crew members had not been paid “for months”, and had not been able to speak with their families during that time.

The International Transport Workers Federation’s Auckland Seafarers Branch said it had secured an undertaking from the local ship’s agent that payments would be made to crew members.

Aozora Bank’s local law firm, Buddle Findlay, has also pledged to use sale proceeds from the ship to accommodate the unpaid crew wages.

Eastwind Maritime collapsed in June, after surviving for months amid lawsuits involving unpaid dues.

The bankruptcy was precipitated by a decisive action on 13 Eastwind ships by Nordea, another lender bank.

Separately, a crew member on the Annapurna is understood to have disappeared between Chile and  New Zealand and is feared dead.

Auckland police have concluded that there was no foul play, according to local media.

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