Sri Lanka Orders Singapore Shipowner to Pay US$1 Billion over Marine Disaster
SRI LANKA, JUL 24 – The court held the ship's owners liable under the Polluter Pays Principle for the largest marine plastic spill, ordering compensation to aid environmental restoration and economic recovery.
- In Colombo, the Supreme Court ordered the owners of the MV X-Press Pearl, a Singapore-flagged ship, to pay USD 1 billion for Sri Lanka’s worst marine pollution disaster, describing it as record-breaking environmental damage.
- The MV X-Press Pearl sank off Colombo in June 2021 after catching fire, releasing the largest recorded marine plastic spill, causing extensive environmental damage.
- Environmental surveys showed tons of microplastic granules inundated Sri Lanka’s western coast, harming marine ecosystems and coastal communities.
- Judges found Nalaka Godahewa and Marine Environment Protection Authority breached rights, while directing USD 1 billion to the Treasury.
- The court directed owners, operators and local agent to pay USD 1 billion by September 23, 2025; this landmark judgment aims to restore Sri Lanka’s marine environment.
28 Articles
28 Articles
Sri Lankan Supreme Court orders $1 bn compensation over X-Press Pearl disaster
The ruling relates to the catastrophic maritime disaster in May 2021, when the Singapore-flagged cargo vessel caught fire and later sank off the Western coast of Sri Lanka, unleashing what experts have described as the worst marine pollution event in the island’s history

Sri Lankan court orders owners of container ship to pay $1 billion in marine pollution compensation
Sri Lanka’s top court has ordered the owners of a Singapore-flagged container ship that sank in 2021 to pay $1 billion in compensation for causing the most severe marine environment catastrophe in the country's history.


Sri Lanka orders Singapore shipowner to pay US$1 billion over marine disaster
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's highest court on Thursday (Jul 24) ordered a Singaporean shipping firm to pay US$1 billion in damages for causing the island's worst marine pollution when its vessel sank four years ago. The Supreme Court directed Express Feeders, the owners of the MV X-Press Pearl which sank off Colom
Sri Lanka hit by plastic pollution after cargo ship sinks off Indian coast
Sri Lankan authorities, locals and environmentalists say they’re deeply concerned about the possible impacts on the country’s marine ecosystem and coastal communities from the sinking of a container ship off the southern coast of India in May, Mongabay contributor Malaka Rodrigo reported in June. The Liberia-flagged ship MSC Elsa 3 sank on May 25 about […]
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