A v B (The “Tai Hunter”) – QBD (Comm Ct) (Henshaw J) [2021] EWHC 793 (Comm) – 31 March 2021

Sale of goods – Fob sale of Ukrainian feed corn – Buyer making invalid nomination of vessel – Seller purporting to terminate contract – Whether false nomination was breach of condition – Whether nominated vessel had to have been already chartered by buyer – Whether buyer’s obligation to provide copy of charterparty was a condition – Arbitration – Serious irregularity – Whether GAFTA Board of Appeal failed to consider various matters

By a contract of sale dated 13 December 2017 the appellant seller agreed to sell to the respondent buyer 25,000 mt +/- 5 per cent at buyers’ option Ukrainian Feed Corn in Bulk, crop 2017, fob 1 safe berth/1 safe Ukrainian port, Yuzhny, Odessa or Chernomorsk.