"Some tanker owners buy $200 million in excess of the $500 million," he said.

Both Onassis and Niarchos claimed to be the largest independent tanker owner in the world.

For tanker owners, the Six-Day War of 1967 was of greater importance.

It requires tanker owners to pay up to $150 per ton of the vessel involved in a spill for cleanup, without regard to fault.

Mercator is the second largest tanker owners in the private sector in India in terms of tonnage.

Executives from both programs said that applications were coming in from tanker owners all over the world.

But Jonathan Benner, arguing for the tanker owners' organization, tried to put the case in a broader historical and political perspective.

Most major tanker owners will probably be in compliance in time, shipping experts say, but some smaller operators may not make the deadline.

By treaty, the organization sets a liability limit for tanker owners and creates a $260 million fund to pay for spills.

He added: 'I would be very sad if we could not come to an agreement with the tanker owners.