A Singapore shipping company said Tuesday it will refuse to pay Sri Lankan court-ordered damages of $1 billion for causing that country¡¯s worst case of environmental pollution.

In an exclusive interview, X-Press Feeders chief executive Shmuel Yoskovitz said he believed paying would have wide-ranging implications on global shipping and ¡°set a dangerous precedent.¡±

The company operated the MV X-Press Pearl that sank off Colombo Port in June 2021 after a fire ¡ª believed to have been caused by a nitric acid leak ¡ª that raged for nearly two weeks.