PORTLAND, Maine — The Singapore company that owns the Nova Star luxury cruise ferry has started to settle debts with creditors to remove liens on the ship.
Two creditors reported in court filings Thursday that they agreed to dismiss their complaints about unpaid debts in the case.
Sprague Operating Resources and Portland Tugboat on Thursday told the U.S. District Court that they agreed to settle their debts and remove their maritime liens.
The companies are the first to notify the court of such a settlement, though Sprague’s debt is perhaps more complicated than others in the case.
Mark Amundsen, CEO of Nova Star Cruises, said in an interview Tuesday that Nova Star Cruises sent payment for fuel from Sprague to Bunkers International Corp., a broker. Bunkers International filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection at the end of August.
Amundsen said Sprague then opted to seek payment from Nova Star Cruises for the fuel.
Both settlements filed in court Thursday did not specify terms but indicated that ship owner ST Marine would make payments to the ship’s court-appointed custodian while the debts are settled, on behalf of Sprague and Portland Tugboat.
Sprague had claimed about $300,000 in unpaid bills from Nova Star Cruises. Portland Tugboat had claimed about $12,000.
Settling those debts leaves another $2.3 million in unpaid bills claimed by other parties. The latest claim filed came from uniform rental and cleaning company Pratt Abbott, which said it’s owed $262,000.
ST Marine had leased the ship to Nova Star Cruises for use as a summer ferry service from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, to Portland. Creditors who had secured their payments against the ship and its equipment began filing complaints in U.S. District Court to arrest the ship earlier this month.
ST Marine notified Nova Star that it was in default on its lease agreement after a judge approved the ship’s arrest, according to Amundsen.
Amundsen said Tuesday that Nova Star Cruises is seeking $2 million from the province of Nova Scotia that it alleges is owed under a subsidy agreement for its inaugural 2013 sailing season. The province has denied it owes Nova Star Cruises any more money.