COSCO bulk vessels detained over non-payments

COSCO bulk vessels detained over non-payments    The bulk carrier unit of the ocean carrier China COSCO has run into problems in recent weeks over an alleged failure to pay charter payments.
   Bloomberg reported Sunday that for the third time in the last two months, a vessel has been detained for failure to pay the charter fees.
   'The Yu Lan Hai was detained as Geneva-based Bunge sought $294,252 in fees plus costs from COSCO unit COSCO Bulk Carrier Co., according to court documents,' the wire report said. 'The ruling was granted by Judge Helen G. Berrigan of the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana on Aug. 18. The arrest followed another attachment in Louisiana earlier this month and one in Singapore in July because of disputes involving late payments. In each case, Tianjin, China-based COSCO was locked into long-term contracts at rates higher than market prices following a collapse in spot rates.'
   The report notes Bunge was owed money from COSCO's use of another ship, the Coal Gypsy, which was hired out in 2008 at rates of as much as $67,000 a day until as late as Dec. 30, 2010, according to the filings. The Coal Gypsy is an 82,295 deadweight-ton bulk carrier, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
   China COSCO said last week in an e-mail to Bloomberg that the disputes were part of 'normal operations' and didn't elaborate further when asked for an updated comment by the news agency.