Court to sell abandoned Bramco tanker in auction

Guangzhou Maritime Court is going to sell the 1990-built oil tanker Bramco 1 through auction on October 8, four years after Bahraini owner Bramco abandoned the ship at Cosco Guangzhou Shipyard in 2015 with 12 crew.

The tanker was undergoing a conversion into a bulk carrier at the shipyard, when the project was suspended due to a financial dispute between the shipyard and the owner. According to the court file, about 95% of the conversion work has been completed.

The court ruled to auction off the vessel at the request of the ship’s crews, who have been left unpaid by the owner.

The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) arrested the vessel in 2017 in an legal case against the owner after it found the crews’ living and health condition was deteriorating onboard the vessel.

The starting price for the vessel in the auction is RMB23.1m ($3.25m).

Bramco is a Bahrain-based mining company. Earlier this year, Bahrain authorities took legal action against the company for labor violations.