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Singapore: High Court grants former Integr8 Fuels Korean desk staff expedited ‘back to work’ status

Integr8 Fuel injunction varied by Singapore Court to allow former employees to start work at Hartree Group in December 2022 following failure to produce evidence on biofuels development plans.
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4 years ago

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Singapore court

The General Division of The High Court of the Republic of Singapore on 16 December 2022 issued a Court Order allowing former Korean staff of bunker trading firm Integr8 Fuels Pte Ltd. (Integr8 Fuels) an expedited return to work.

Both were supposed to join commodities trading firm Hartree Group in October 2022 when Integr8 Fuels took its former Sales Director Kim Hyung Joon and ex-Senior Bunker Trader Han Donghoon (also known as Danny) to court over alleged confidentiality and competition infringement violations

Background

In court documents filed in October 2022, Integr8 Fuels claimed it discovered Mr Kim and Danny were planning to join the Hartree Group in October 2022 after the management of Integr8 Fuels, Navig8 Group and Hartree Group spoke in September 2022.

According to Integr8 Fuels, following this, the company conducted an investigation which revealed Mr Kim and Danny sending large amounts of information from their Intergr8 Fuels email addresses to their personal email accounts from June 2021 and September 2021 respectively onwards before leaving their former employer.

Integr8 Fuels later filed a “without notice” application on 26 October 2022 and obtained an interim injunction at a hearing on 28 October 2022 restraining Mr Kim and Danny, both unrepresented by a counsel at the time, from being involved in any businesses competing with the activities of Integr8 Fuels until 28 March 2023 and 13 April 2023 respectively.

Mr Kim and Danny were also restrained from using, disclosing and/or divulging to any third-party confidential information of Integr8 Fuels.

Latest court documents obtained by Manifold Times stated Mr Kim and Danny did not have an opportunity to address earlier allegations made by Integr8 Fuels at the 28 October 2022 hearing of the “without notice” application.

Since then, Mr Kim and Danny engaged counsel and thereafter filed an application to set aside / vary the interim injunction.

Company Email Accounts

In court papers seen by Manifold Times, Mr Kim and Danny, both experienced bunker traders prior to joining Integr8 Fuels, explained there was in fact no sinister or ill intent to steal confidential information before leaving Integr8 Fuels, as was suggested by Integr8 Fuels.

Instead, shortly after joining Integr8 Fuels in October 2020, as part of his work process, Mr Kim set up a macro on his office email account which auto-forwarded emails with certain keywords to his personal email account whenever he received emails from work email addresses.

Similarly, shortly after joining Integr8 Fuels in January 2021, Danny forwarded emails from his office email account to his personal email account and also vice versa (including to Mr Kim’s work email account) as part of his work process and due to the “laggy” IT set up at Integr8 Fuels.

Both Mr Kim and Danny, who provided documents to support their explanations, also agreed to delete all of the Integr8 Fuels emails from their personal email accounts to give Integr8 Fuels assurance there is no intention to misuse any information in the emails.

Inconsistent Restraint Periods

As to the length of the restraint period under the interim injunction (28 March and 13 April 2023) affecting Mr Kim and Danny respectively, both pointed out Integr8 Fuel’s position at the 28 October 2022 hearing was inconsistent with the position previously communicated to them.

Documents showed that, on 30 September 2022, prior to the commencement of legal action in late October 2022, Integr8 Fuels confirmed to Mr Kim and Danny in writing their restraint periods would end on 3 January 2023 and 25 January 2023 respectively.

Non-competition Clause

Separately, Mr Kim and Danny contended their intention to commence work with the Hartree Group in October 2022 did not amount to a breach of their non-competition provisions.

Mr Kim and Danny, who only traded in traditional marine fuels during their time at Integr8 Fuels, informed Integr8 Fuels in writing on 4 October 2022 that they intended to limit themselves to only being involved in the China and Asian biofuels markets except for Singapore and Korea for the period of their restraints.

Both further explained Integr8 Fuels had no proposed business plan to start trading or supplying biofuels within the last 12 months of their employment.

Integr8 Fuels Managing Director Tushar Gole, on the other hand, claimed “biofuels is an integral part of [Integr8 Fuels] portfolio”.

Finally, by reference to a screenshot of a conversation, Mr Kim contended Mr Gole knew as early as 5 July 2022 Mr Kim would be joining Hartree. Mr Kim contended Integr8 Fuels did not point out this out previously at the 28 October 2022 hearing because it did not fit into Integr8 Fuel’s narrative when it sought urgent injunctive relief on a “without notice” basis at the 28 October 2022 hearing.

Expedited Return to Work

On 16 December 2022, the Court heard Mr Kim’s and Danny’s application and varied Integr8 Fuels’ injunction to grant Mr Kim and Danny expedited “back to work” status.

The Court also varied the injunction to make clear Mr Kim and Danny are not restrained from using, disclosing and/or divulging to any third party any information which they were already privy to prior to them joining Integr8 Fuels and the Navig8 group of companies.

As part of its order on 16 December 2022, the Court gave Integr8 Fuels an opportunity to produce affidavit evidence by 21 December 2022 “demonstrating a transaction or genuine plans on biofuels” if it wished to restrain Mr Kim and Danny from being involved in biofuels until January 2023. Based on the court papers seen by Manifold Times, Integr8 Fuels did not produce such evidence.

As such, Mr Kim and Danny were able to be involved in biofuels from 22 December 2022 onwards and are now expected to be back in the market from 4 January and 26 January 2023 onwards respectively, as per their stated intention to Integr8 Fuels on 4 October 2022.

Related: Singapore: Integr8 Fuels files lawsuit against former Korean staff over alleged confidentiality violations

 

Photo credit: Manifold Times
Published: 20 January, 2022

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Bunker Fuel Quality

Bunker flash: High levels of chemical compounds found in Malaysia, alerts Maritec-Naias

During the period of 15 April to 15 July 2026, Maritec-Naias tested multiple fuel oil bunker samples from vessels that took fuel/bunkered in Malaysia ports.

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Published

14 hours ago

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August 11, 2026

By

RESIZED Hans Reniers on Unsplash

Bunker fuel testing and marine surveying business Maritec-Naias on Monday (10 August) issued an alert regarding high levels of chemical compounds found in multiple fuel oil bunker samples from vessels that have taken fuel/bunkered in Malaysia ports:

During the period of 15 April to 15 July 2026, Maritec-Naias tested multiple fuel oil bunker samples from vessels that took fuel/bunkered in Malaysia ports, which indicated the presence of high levels chemical compounds.

Five cases were found to have Phenolic compounds and Alkylresorcinols in the range of 1070 – 9994 PPM and three cases were found to have reactive hydrocarbons in the range of 4500 – 20000 PPM. Operational issues like excessive sludge formation in purifier and wear-and-tear of the fuel pump were reported.

Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) testing using the Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) method confirmed the presence of Alkylresorcinols in samples tested. In addition, GC-MS ASTM D7845 analysis identified a range of phenolic compounds and reactive hydrocarbons – including styrene and its derivatives, dicyclopentadiene, dihydro-dicyclopentadiene, and indene – providing comprehensive evidence of contamination.

The presence of Alkylresorcinols may originate from non-petroleum cutter stocks, such as Estonian shale oil, while the detected reactive hydrocarbons could stem from ethylene cracker by-products. In addition, the fuels appear to have been blended with low-quality marine fuels, a practice likely driven by sharply rising bunker prices amid the war in the Middle East.

Regulatory Implications:

Due to the high levels of these chemical compounds the fuel does not meet the general requirement and is considered as off-spec fuel as per clause 5 of ISO8217 and MARPOL Annex VI regulation 18, which states:

“The fuels shall be homogeneous blends of hydrocarbons derived from petroleum refining. This shall not preclude the incorporation of small amounts of additives intended to improve some aspects of performance. The fuels shall be free from inorganic acids and from used lubricating oils. The fuel should not include any added substance or chemical waste which,

  1. a) jeopardizes the safety of ships or adversely affects the performance of the machinery; or
  2. b) is harmful to personnel; or
  3. c) contributes overall to additional air pollution.”

MARITEC-NAIAS RECOMMENDATIONS

  • Closely observe the vessel fuel system/s for signs of filter clogging and purifier sludging and additionally, increase vigilance on the centrifuges to monitor overloading.
  • Increase frequency of their de-sludging cycle depending on the accumulated sludge.
  • Possibly reduce the mean time between bowl cleaning of the purifier and fuel system filters.
  • Avoid blending with other fuels, in particular marine diesel and gas oil and also other fuel oil as such mixing may well increase the sediment problem.
  • Opt for Maritec-Naias’s highly cost-effective Marine Fuel Testing Programme (MFTP) PLUS testing for all residual bunker fuel. This package includes routine ISO 8217 Testing, targeted GC-MS screening for 38 high-risk compounds relevant to ship operations & P-value Stability Testing – providing crucial pre-burn protection against fouled purifiers, blocked injectors & engine failure.

 

Photo credit: Hans Reniers on Unsplash
Published: 11 August, 2026

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Winding up

Singapore: Liquidator schedules final meeting for LNG Easy (S)

Meeting will be held on 7 September at 6 Shenton Way, OUE Downtown 2, #33-00, Singapore 068809 to hear any explanation that may be given by the liquidator, according to Government Gazette notice.
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Published

14 hours ago

on

August 11, 2026

By

RESIZED Jo_Johnston from Pixabay

The final meeting for LNG Easy (S) Private Limited has been scheduled to take place on 7 September, according to the company’s liquidator on a notice posted on Friday (7 August) on the Government Gazette.

The meetings will be held at 10am at 6 Shenton Way, OUE Downtown 2, #33-00, Singapore 068809. 

The meeting is being held for the purpose of having an account laid before the meeting showing the manner in which the winding up has been conducted and the property of the company disposed of, and of hearing any explanation that may be given by the liquidators.

It is also held to consent to the release of the liquidators upon the dissolution of the company and thereby discharge them from all liabilities in respect of any act done or default made by them in the administration of the affairs of the company.

The following are the details of the liquidator:

Tan Wei Cheong
Joint and Several Liquidator
c/o 6 Shenton Way, OUE Downtown 2, #33-00
Singapore 068809

Manifold Times previously reported the High Court of Singapore issuing a winding up order to LNG Easy (S).

The winding up application was filed by China-based Shanghai Hengda (Jituan) Youxian Gongsi on 25 June.

Related: High Court of Singapore issues winding up order against LNG Easy (S)
Related: Singapore: High Court to hear LNG Easy (S) winding up application on 18 July

 

Photo credit: Jo_Johnston from Pixabay
Published: 11 August, 2026

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Winding up

Singapore: Portunus Shipping Pte Ltd to be wound up voluntarily

Liquidators have been appointed at an extraordinary general meeting held on 31 July for the purpose of winding up company’s affair, according to Government Gazette notice.
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Published

14 hours ago

on

August 11, 2026

By

Resized benjamin child

Several resolutions for Portunus Shipping Pte Ltd were made during an extraordinary meeting held on 31 July, according to a post in the Government Gazette on Friday (7 August).

The duly passed resolutions were:

AS SPECIAL RESOLUTIONS

  1. That the Company be wound up voluntarily pursuant to Section 160(1) of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018 (the “Act”).
  2. That Lau Chin Huat and Yeo Boon Keong, as the Joint and Several Liquidators, be and are hereby authorised to divide among the contributory in cash or in specie the whole or any part of the assets of the company.
  3. That the Joint and Several Liquidators be at the liberty to exercise all or any of the powers conferred on themselves pursuant to the Act.

AS ORDINARY RESOLUTIONS

  1. That Lau Chin Huat and Yeo Boon Keong, of 50 Havelock Road, #02-767, Singapore 160050 be appointed as the Joint and Several Liquidators for the purpose of winding up the company.
  2. That the remuneration and winding up disbursements of the Joint and Several Liquidators be fixed on a time basis at rates as agreed in the engagement letter.
  3. That the Joint and Several Liquidators be authorised to destroy all books and papers of the Company and of the Joint and Several Liquidators 5 years after the date of dissolution of the Company pursuant to Section 195(2) of the Act.

In another notice, the liquidators of Portunus Shipping said creditors for the company are required on or before the 7 September to send in their names and addresses and particulars of their debts or claims, and the names and addresses of their solicitors (if any) to the liquidators. 

Liquidators may also require creditors to, “come in and prove their debts or claims at such time and place as shall be specified in such notice, or in default thereof they will be excluded from the benefit of any distribution made before such debts are proved.”

The liquidators can be contacted at the following address:

Yeo Boon Keong
Joint and Several Liquidators
c/o
Technic Inter-Asia Pte Ltd
50 Havelock Road, #02-767, Singapore 160050
Tel: 6561 0398 Fax: 6222 1855
Email: [email protected] 

 

Photo credit: Benjamin child
Published: 11 August, 2026

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