Category: English Maritime Cases
ASBATANKVOY -- LOADPORT -- LOAD OPERATIONS -- DEMURRAGE -- ARBITRATIONT -- CARGO CONTAMINATION -- LIABILITY FOR DEMURRAGE, FREIGHT, DEADFREIGHT AND DAMAGES -- Owner Award
The Vessel arrived at loadport, passed surveyor inspection, and began loading cargo. However, when the surveyor inspected the cargo after partial loading, He/She rejected the loaded cargo because of floating particles in the sample. After the voyage, the Owner claimed that the surveyor passed the Vessel before loading and filed demurrage for the tank cleaning delays.
ARBITRATION -- VOYAGE -- DEMURRAGE -- SPEED WARRANTY -- SEAWORTHINESS -- SPEED WARRANTY – LOSS OF ANCHOR CHAINS -- UNSEAWORTHINESS OR UNSAFE PORT/BERTH - VALIDITY OF NOR -- Owner Award
The arbitration following the Vessel’s voyage encompassed several key demurrage arguments. Disputes center around the Vessel speed warranty and the application of the word "about", the fault for broken anchor chains (Charterer port unsafety or Owner Vessel unseaworthiness), and the validity of subsequent NOR tender if the anchors were broken.
SHELLTIME 4 -- CARGO -- CONTAMINATION -- DEADFREIGHT -- POSSESSORY LIEN -- DISPORT -- TIME-CHARTER -- OFF-HIRE -- Owner Award
In response to a Charterer agreement to use the unclean Vessel for transporting sub-Charterer's naphtha cargo, the sub-Charterer refused to load the Vessel to full capacity in fear of cargo contamination. The Charterer subsequently claimed deadfreight and incurred a possessory lien for over a month at disport. Under the time-charter contract, the Owner seeks hire payment for the month-long arrest which the Charterer deducted as off-hire.
BPVOY 4 -- CHARTER PARTY -- CARGO -- LAYTIME -- TIME-BAR -- Owner Award
After the Vessel had arrived, tendered NOR, and waited for berthing instructions until after the 84H laytime allowance expired, the Charterer cancelled the Charter Party due to being unable to supply cargo. The Owner responded with a damages claim eleven months later; however, there is a stipulation in the charter that states that any claim after 180 days is time-barred.
NYPE -- CHARTER -- VOYAGE -- ARBITRATION -- CONTRACT -- RE-DELIVERED VESSEL BUNKER COSTS -- Owner Award
The governing period charter rate, in this case, is defined by "per Platts Oilgram average on delivery." However, the delivery day price was not available until after voyage, so the prior day’s rate was used and then updated when the delivery day price was published. The Charterer refuted this change arguing that the updated average became available only after delivery and was in breach of the contract.
ARBITRATION -- CARGO -- CONTAMINATION -- BURDEN OF PROOF -- CONTAMINANTS -- BERTH -- DEMURRAGE -- DELAY -- Owner Award
This arbitration dispute centers around the fault of cargo contamination and the proper evidence to support the blame. After contaminants were found in the tank samples, the Vessel was forced off berth and the Owner filed demurrage for the cleaning time. The Charterer counterclaimed that the contamination came from the Vessel’s tank, so therefore, any delays came from Owner unreadiness.
SHELLVOY 5 -- ARBITRATION -- CHARTER PARTY -- LAYCAN -- LAYTIME -- EARLY LOADING CLAUSE -- Owner Award
This arbitration settles a dispute pertaining to the Shellvoy 5 charter party clause that defines the savings earned by the Charterers if loading ends before laycan begins. The Charterers interpret the clause as crediting their savings from when laytime begins to the beginning of laycan, while the Owners argue that the savings period begins only after the end of the early laytime.
ASBATANKVOY – BREAKDOWN OF MACHINERY – FAULT OF CHARTERER Although the sealine was considered ill-maintained, each individual breakdown must be looked at within the context of the governing charterparty – Breakdown, per Cl. 8 of Asbatankvoy, 1/2 demurrage applies / Shifting expenses not to count. [dropcap]I[/dropcap]n overturning the High Court, the Court of Appeal (Civil Division) in the case of Portolana Compania Naviera v. Vitol SA – “The Afrapearl” [9 Jul 04] had to consider the difficult question of what constitutes equipment and the circumstances where the Charterers could rely on the half rate provisions of Asbatankvoy, Part II, Clause...
