ICC Tribunal in Singapore grant an arbitral award of over US$40m in complex proceedings concerning a Southeast Asian petrochemical plant

Graeme Halkerston and Jamie Holmes successfully appeared for the claimants in a confidential ICC arbitration culminating in a complex 8-day trial in Singapore. The Tribunal’s final award ordered the respondents to pay the currency equivalent of over US$40m to the claimants, inclusive of interest, arising out of a series of breaches of contract concerning a petrochemical plant in Southeast Asia. The trial involved two separate claims for liquidated damages by the claimants, and a further set of corresponding and competing claims by both sets of parties, with four sets of experts on each side. The claims gave raise to a number of points of English law contractual interpretation, including of foreign-language contractual documents, contractual pre-conditions, and provisions for certification and extensions of time, as well a number of issues as to waiver, estoppel, the prevention principle, restitution and penalties. Graeme and Jamie acted as part of an international team of attorneys, with the successful team including firms based in both Japan and the United States.