Sri Lanka wins billion from shipping companies over X-Press Pearl disaster
Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court secured a landmark billion environmental ruling against the owners of the MV X-Press Pearl, the container ship that burned and sank off Colombo in 2021, releasing toxic chemicals and nearly 1,700 tonnes of plastic nurdles across South Asian waters. The July 2025 judgment delivers long-awaited accountability for thousands of fishing families whose livelihoods were devastated overnight. Beyond Sri Lanka, the ruling demonstrates that courts in developing nations can enforce the polluter-pays principle against powerful global shipping interests. Environmental groups are calling it a potential model for the Global South.
