The case concerned a collision between the Claimants’ container ship, X-PRESS MAHANADA (XPM), and the Defendants’ tanker, BURGAN, in the Karnaphuli River near Chattogram, Bangladesh. The collision occurred at the Gupta Crossing, a significant bend in the river, with both ships under pilotage. The issues were (i) fault, specifically whether BURGAN was in the wrong water, violating Rule 9(a) of the Collision Regulations, and (ii) apportionment of liability between three ships. BURGAN’s defence was that her position was influenced by the third ship, SHAKTI SANCHAR (SS), which entered the channel shortly before the collision.
The court concluded that BURGAN was predominantly at fault for the collision due to her failure to navigate correctly within the channel and to maintain a proper lookout or react correctly to the situation. The court apportioned 65% of the fault to BURGAN and 35% to SS for their respective navigational errors leading to the incident. XPM was found to have some minor faults but they were held not to be causative. The full judgment [2025] EWHC 721 (Admiralty) may be found here.