Business
Galadari Advocates & Legal Consultants: Securing a bunkering claim in United Arab Emirates
Partner Abdelhak Attalah discusses possibility for a bunker supplier, whether a physical supplier or a trader, to arrest and enforce the statutory lien generated by their debt over a ship in UAE jurisdiction.

Published
9 months agoon
By
Admin
Law firm Galadari Advocates & Legal Consultants partner Abdelhak Attalah released an article to discuss the possibility for a bunker supplier, whether a physical supplier or a trader, to arrest and enforce the statutory lien generated by their debt over a ship in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) jurisdiction:
The right of ship arrest under UAE law for unpaid bunker
Relevant to our following discussion is that for ship arrest the UAE has adopted a “closed-list” approach for the definition of a “maritime claim”, where a list consists of limited numbers of maritime debts based on which only a ship could be arrested. These are reduced to fifteen (15) classes of maritime claims listed in Article 115(2) of the UAE Federal Law of No. 26 of 1981, as amended by Federal Law No. 11 of 1988, concerning the Commercial Maritime Law (“CML”). As for the bunkering claim, it is listed in paragraph (i) of the said Article which classifies it as: “Supplies of products or equipment necessary for the utilization or maintenance of the vessel, in whichever place the supply is made.” Thus, ship arrest in the UAE is a preservatory remedy to obtain security, in favor of an unpaid bunker claim in the merits whether commenced or to be commenced through court litigation or arbitration.
Bunker litigation in the UAE and the time-bar (a statute of limitations as known under common law jurisdictions)
Bunker claim is not only classified by the CML as “maritime debt” but a “priority debt” as stated forth in Article 84 (e) of the CML which classifies bunkering debt as:
“Debts arising out of contracts made by the master, and operations carried out by him outside the port of registration of the vessel within the scope of his lawful powers for an actual requirement dictated by the maintenance of the vessel or the continuance of its voyage, whether or not the master is also the owner of the vessel, or whether the debt is due to him, or to persons undertaking supply, or lenders, persons who have repaired the vessel, or other contractors.”
Thus, bunker claim takes precedence over some other maritime debts such as ship mortgage, demurrages, and insurance premium, and it ranks pari passu with other ship supplies. However, bunker claim would be time-barred within six (6) months as stated forth in Article 93 of the CML.
The validity of the incorporation of an English law clause contained in the General Terms and Conditions of the bunker supplier into their bunker delivery receipt under UAE law
The position of the UAE Courts has been clearly apparent regarding the incorporation by reference of a clause contained in another standard form contract or in the General Terms and Conditions of a trader stating for the application of the English law into an underlying contract as decided by the Dubai Court of Appeal in Cigna Insurance Middle East (S.A.L) v. Agribusiness United DMCC, Dubai Commercial Appeal No.2320 of 2021 and confirmed by Dubai Commercial Cassation No. 204 of 2022.
This ruling would have considerable benefit for bunker suppliers in raising their claims before UAE Courts, because, while unpaid bunker is not considered as a maritime claim under English law unlike the UAE law as confirmed in the English case PST Energy 7 Shipping LLC v O.W. Bunker Malta Ltd [2015] EWCA Civ 1058 (‘Bunkers’) however, in the same case, the arbitrators, the first instance judge and the Court of Appeal decided that the price of the supplied bunker was due as a matter of debt. Therefore, the supplier’s claim is a straightforward claim in debt and as such is subject to section 5 of the Limitation Act 1980 which states:
“Time limit for actions founded on simple contract: “An action founded on simple contract shall not be brought after the expiration of six years from the date on which the cause of action accrued.””
Thus, whenever the terms and conditions of the bunker suppliers state for the application of English law to their supply contracts, they may rely on the extended statutory time limit of six years stated forth by section 5 of the Limitation Act 1980 instead of the six months stated forth in Article 93 of the CML.
The validity of the incorporation of an arbitration clause contained in the General Terms and Conditions of the bunker supplier into their bunker delivery receipt under UAE law
While Article 7(b) of the UAE Arbitration law of 2018 allows the incorporation of an arbitration clause contained in the General Terms and Conditions by reference those General terms and conditions however, the general rule of incorporation by reference is the “express terms” requirement where specific wording is used. Indeed, in Al Buhaira National Insurance Co. v. The Shipping Corporation of India Limited (Cassation No. 363 of 2011, Civil Appeal), the wording of incorporation of an arbitration clause stated that: “All terms, conditions and exceptions (including but not limited to Due Diligence, Negligence, Force Majeure, War, Liberties and Arbitration clauses) contained in which charter are herewith incorporated and form part hereof.” The court of cassation held that, the above incorporation wording in the bill of lading was sufficiently express to enable the charter party arbitration clause to be validly incorporated by reference. The requirement of express reference to the arbitration clause was confirmed by UAE Courts in recent rulings such as in the Dubai Courts Real Estate Cassations Nos. 603 and 693 of 2021.
Thus, the important aspect of the Court of Cassation’s ruling is that an arbitration clause contained in the General Terms and Conditions of the bunker supplier can be incorporated into their bunker delivery receipt by reference, as long as: (a) not only those General Terms and Conditions are incorporated by reference; but (b) the referral of disputes to arbitration as specified in the relevant General Terms and Conditions clause is also specifically incorporated into their bunker delivery receipt.
Photo credit: David Rodrigo on Unsplash
Published: 13 March, 2023
Biofuel
China Shipping & Sinopec Suppliers completes first biofuel bunkering op of passenger ship in Dalian
Firm successfully refuelled passenger ship “Chang Shan Dao” owned by Cosco Shipping Ferry with B24 bio bunker fuel on 29 November at Dalian Cruise Port.

Published
2 days agoon
December 8, 2023By
Admin
China Shipping & Sinopec Suppliers Co., Ltd. on Wednesday (29 November) successfully refuelled passenger ship "Chang Shan Dao" owned by Cosco Shipping Ferry Co., Ltd. with B24 bio bunker fuel at the Dalian Cruise Port.
The occasion marked the first biofuel bunkering operation for passenger ships in China.
The B24 biofuel oil used was blended with 24% biofuel and 76% conventional low-sulphur fuel oil.
Sinopec China Shipping Fuel Supply, which is responsible for the bunkering operation, is a bunker supply firm jointly established by Sinopec Group and COSCO Shipping Group.
According to Li Zhi, Deputy Party Secretary and Deputy General Manager of China Shipping & Sinopec Suppliers Co., Ltd., the biofuel bunkering business is another step in the company's active business of the group's development strategy.
The bunkering operation after the firm completed the first bonded biofuel bunkering operation of a domestic ship on 7 September.
Disclaimer: The above article published by Manifold Times was sourced from China’s domestic market through a local correspondent. While considerable efforts have been taken to verify its accuracy through a professional translator and processed from sources believed to be reliable, no warranty is made regarding the accuracy, completeness and reliability of any information.
Photo credit: China Shipping & Sinopec Suppliers
Published: 8 December, 2023
Alternative Fuels
Singapore, Tianjin to pilot and trial alternative bunker fuels following shipping corridor MoU
Singapore – Tianjin Green and Digital Shipping Corridor will serve as a valuable testbed for both countries to pilot and trial digital solutions, alternative fuels and technologies, amongst others.

Published
2 days agoon
December 8, 2023By
Admin
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the People’s Republic of China’s Tianjin Municipal Transportation Commission on Wednesday (6 December) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish the Singapore – Tianjin Green and Digital Shipping Corridor.
Mr Teo Eng Dih, Chief Executive, MPA, and Mr Wang Zhinan, Director General, Tianjin Municipal Transportation Commission, signed this MoU.
The MoU marked the first Green and Digital Shipping Corridor established between Singapore and China to support the decarbonisation, digitalisation and growth of the maritime industry between Singapore and the Bohai Region.
The Singapore – Tianjin Green and Digital Shipping Corridor will serve as a valuable testbed for both countries to pilot and trial digital solutions, alternative bunker fuels and technologies, and facilitate talent development to support the decarbonisation and digitalisation of shipping.
Singapore and Tianjin will work with the research community, the institutes of higher learning, and industry stakeholders such as shipping lines, port operators, shipbuilders, classification societies, and bunker suppliers to enable more efficient port clearance through digital exchanges, encourage the offtake of zero or near-zero greenhouse gas emission fuels and adoption of new fuel technologies, spur innovation and support the growth of the maritime startups community, and facilitate manpower training and professional development.
The establishment of the Singapore – Tianjin Green and Digital Shipping Corridor reaffirms the strong commitment by Singapore and Tianjin to accelerate maritime decarbonisation and digitalisation. Singapore will also be exploring the establishment of similar collaboration with other maritime and port ecosystems within China.
Photo credit: Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore
Published: 8 December, 2023
Decarbonisation
Report highlights routes-based action plan methodology to accelerate uptake of clean bunker fuels
NextGEN Connect-GreenVoyage2050 collaboration, which includes Singapore, emphasises the important role of regional energy hubs in enabling the inclusive adoption of clean marine fuels.

Published
2 days agoon
December 8, 2023By
Admin
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) on Thursday (7 December) said the NextGEN Connect-Green Voyage2050 Project identified a key role for regional hubs to help connect large demand clusters and remote locations, with regional fuel supply sources, in order to enable a more inclusive and effective transition to a low-carbon maritime future.
The project is a collaboration between Singapore, Norway and the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
These findings were unveiled in the Lloyd’s Register Maritime Decarbonisation Hub (LR MDH) report titled Routes-based Action Plans: A Toolkit launched at the Voyage to Net-Zero Forum, which was organised by MPA, at the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28/CMP8/CMA5) yesterday.
The report was developed following a workshop discussion that was held from 5 to 6 October 2023 in Singapore, with the participation of 40 stakeholders representing ports and National Administrations across Asia, based on the concept of the LR MDH’s First Movers Framework for green corridors. The workshop simulated the process steps of the routes-based action plan methodology, addressing the limitations in its application in the wider Asian context. Additional engagements with stakeholders from the Pacific are envisaged to further refine the methodology.
“One of the key findings in our report highlighted the varying pace of decarbonisation efforts across the Asian region and the need for regional coordination among governments to establish energy clusters that will serve both as demand centres and energy producing hubs” said Charles Haskell, Director at LR MDH.
The creation of energy producing hubs includes defining a strategy that brings together demand from different countries at different developmental stages across the region to build up investment cases for implementing energy infrastructure at scale, all the while taking into consideration the economic and social benefits for local communities.
The report also emphasised that routes-based action plans should be steered by national governments to give confidence to the industry’s infrastructure investment decisions, with development banks and regional funds needing to play a part to help tailor financing solutions to support infrastructure development.
“If we truly want to achieve a net-zero future where no one is left behind, we cannot focus only on existing first mover initiatives. We must also study locations where the energy infrastructure is still in its infancy”, added Charles Haskell.
Essential to driving the implementation of routes-based action plans, as highlighted in the report, is the pooling of resources and capacity building to develop the business case for building the necessary infrastructure for regional hubs that include Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). This will require regional coordination and collaboration involving governments and all stakeholders across the maritime supply chain.
Mr. Teo Eng Dih, Chief Executive of MPA, said: “As we steer toward a sustainable maritime future, fostering a collective and inclusive approach is imperative in the development of green corridors and the energy transition to decarbonise international shipping.”
“The NextGEN Connect-GreenVoyage2050 collaboration emphasises the important role of regional energy hubs in enabling the inclusive adoption of clean marine fuels, particularly for LDCs and SIDSs. MPA looks forward to continuing its collaboration with IMO, Ministry of Climate and Environment of Norway and LR MDH to pilot solutions to reduce GHG emissions from ships and drive innovative transformations in the maritime industry.”
Sveinung Oftedal, Chief Negotiator of the Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment, said: “Separate routes for emission-free ferries and ships can play an essential role in stimulating early action to adopt zero or near-zero emission technologies and fuels, and hence are an important step towards decarbonising shipping. There is currently a significant volume of maritime traffic between Asian countries, and our workshop was a great forum to discuss opportunities the decarbonisation of maritime shipping can bring and how efforts can be linked to countries’ wider energy transition.”
Jose Matheickal, IMO Director of Partnerships and Projects, said: “Supporting developing countries, including SIDS and LDCs, in their efforts to implement the 2023 IMO Strategy on the Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships is imperative to the decarbonisation of the maritime sector. IMO is pleased to provide, through this collaboration, practical support around the development and subsequent implementation of National Action Plans and route-based actions in line with IMO’s MEPC RESOLUTION.366(79) that encourages Member States to undertake these voluntary actions to facilitate the achievement of greener shipping and reduced emissions.”
Note: ‘Routes-based action Plans: a toolkit’ can be found here.
Photo credit: Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore
Published: 8 December, 2023

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