OW Bunker Cases Result in $92.8 Million Settlement

The Danish Eastern High Court will need to formally approve the settlement before it is finalised. File Image / Pixabay

A group of Danish investors has been awarded DKK 645 million ($92.8 million) in a settlement of their cases over the collapse of marine fuel trading firm OW Bunker almost a decade ago.

Pension funds ATP, PFA and 22 other Danish institutional investors had brought two actions for damages in 2016 and 217 over the OW Bunker collapse, and a group of foreign institutional investors and an association of Danish private investors had brought two corresponding charges.

The plaintiffs in the four legal actions have now been awarded a settlement of about DKK 645 million, including legal costs, private equity firm Altor Equity Partners said in a press release on Monday.

OW Bunker collapsed in November 2014 after significant derivatives losses and a loss from one of its subsidiary's biggest customers in Singapore.

The Danish Eastern High Court will need to formally approve the settlement before it is finalised.

"We are pleased that we have reached a settlement.," Tomas Krüger Andersen, head of legal at ATP Pensions & Investments, said in the statement.

"We brought the legal action with the primary objective of ensuring that our members receive the highest possible compensation for the loss.

"We have achieved that objective

"The judgment from the Eastern High Court is currently not expected before 2026 after 100 days in court, and it is likely that a judgment would be appealed to the Supreme Court, adding even more years before a final judgment would be obtained.

"The costs of this would run into millions. It would not be in our members' interest."