Oil tanker company Hunter Group ASA says it is owed $55 million by a counterparty disputing its contractual obligations after a surge in the world's benchmark freight rate. The underpayment has been steadily accruing over several months, with the deficit up about $12 million from an update a month ago, according to the company's statements. The dispute highlights growing tensions in the tanker market as freight rates climb.

Hunter Group ASA, headquartered in Norway, operates a fleet of crude oil and product tankers. The company has not publicly identified the counterparty involved in the rate dispute.

The escalating freight rate environment has led to multiple contractual disagreements across the shipping industry, with owners and charterers clashing over revised terms and payments.