Hanjin Louisiana docks in Singapore with British cadets on board

A stranded container ship from the troubled Hanjin group has finally docked in the port of Singapore after weeks of uncertainty at sea.

The Hanjin Louisiana docked on Wednesday afternoon with four British officer cadets among those on board.

The South Korean shipping line went into receivership in August, leaving most of its ships in limbo at sea.

The trainees, studying at the City of Glasgow College, are among an estimated 2,500 stranded Hanjin seafarers.

Around the globe, Hanjin vessels were blocked from going into port partly because port authorities are worried they might not get paid and partly because of concerns by Hanjin that its vessels might be seized by creditors.

The company has since filed for bankruptcy protection in many countries, gradually allowing its ships to dock.

Under bankruptcy protection a company can reorganise its debts and stop assets from being seized.

In Singapore, all proceedings against Hanjin have been frozen, allowing ships to dock without the risk of being seized.

The Hanjin Louisiana is the third Hanjin vessel to dock in the last week.

The container ship previously sailed from Mumbai to Shanghai and Qingdao before the bankruptcy interrupted its schedule.

The four Scottish officer trainees, who are studying at City of Glasgow College, were on board as part of their nautical science course.

Seafarers union Nautilus named the cadets as Ruaridh Hanna, David Gorniak, Graeme Deacon and Gavin McPhail. They had been due to disembark on 2 September.

Scottish sigh of relief as cadets' ship docks

The troubled shipping group has debts of more than $5bn (£3.8bn) and has struggled to raise funding to rescue sailors, ships and cargo stranded round the world following its collapse.

Since the firm filed for receivership, there have been several attempts to raise money to at least bring the ships back to port and offload the cargo.

After media reports on Wednesday had suggested a possible sale of the firm, Hanjin Shipping shares soared by 18%.

The Seoul court overseeing the receivership denied though there had been any decision and said a sale was merely one of many options for Hanjin's future.