PROFINDO PTE LTD V ABANI TRADING PTE LTD

[2013] SGHC 10, Singapore High Court, Judith Prakash J, 16 January 2013

Sale of goods - CFR terms - Demurrage - Carrying vessel forced to leave berth halfway through the unloading process - Suspension of demurrage - Calculation of demurrage as between a seller and a buyer in a "cost and freight" ("CFR") sale contract - Buyer claiming for shortfall upon discharge - Seller's delivery obligation fulfilled at ship's rail at port of loading

On 19 May 2009 Profindo had agreed to sell 2,750 mt of cement to Abani. The cargo was to be loaded in China and delivered to a port in Madagascar. The terms of the sale were contained in a pro forma invoice. At the discharge port, Abani would discharge the goods within the allowable laytime of 2.75 days, calculated on the basis that 2,750 mt of cargo would be discharged at the rate of 1,000 mt per day. The contract was on a CFR basis. The vessel having commenced discharge at Diego Suarez, Madagascar, the port authorities unexpectedly required her to interrupt discharge and leave the berth. The parties disagreed on whether the interruption also suspended laytime. Sellers ultimately paid the shipowners a compromise sum, but in the meantime had suffered loss of earnings as a result of being blacklisted by shipowners. In this litigation, sellers claimed for the sum paid in demurrage, loss of earnings and for reimbursement of port disbursements. Buyers counterclaimed alleging that the cement delivered was not of satisfactory quality and that there was a shortfall in the quantity delivered. This was the seller's appeal of the decision of the district judge upon the issues of suspension of demurrage, loss of earnings, shortfall of cement, and costs.