The Court of Appeal has ruled that the National Gas Company's (NGC) asset freezing order against mega-contractor ,Super Industrial Services (SIS) over the controversial Beetham Water Treatment Plant should be removed.
While the court's decision effectively quashed the injunction which prevented the company and its subsidiary, Rain Forest Resorts Ltd (RFRL), from disposing of $180 million of its assets before arbitration proceedings over the project are completed, the judges said that NGC was entitled to a temporary stay of the judgment.
Delivering an oral judgment at the Hall of Justice yesterday, three appellate j agreed with SIS's attorneys that NGC's claim should be dismissed as the State-owned company had failed to meet strict timelines for civil lawsuits set in the Civil Proceedings Rules.
Appellate judges Rajendra Narine, Judith Jones and Peter Rajkumar overturned a previous decision of High Court Judge Joan Charles, who in June rejected SIS' complaints over the failure of NGC to set a case management conference after the injunction had been granted on December 23 last year, as required by the rules. NGC had disputed the claim.
NGC's lead lawyer, Deborah Peake, SC, yesterday requested the court reimpose the injunction as her client decided whether to lodge a final appeal in the United Kingdom-based Privy Council.
"The court has a duty to continue the injunction to ensure that the issue is not rendered nugatory as we pursue the appeal," she said.
RFRL's attorney, Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, SC, opposed Peake's application, saying her client could not seek immediately a fresh or continued injunction until it had applied to the court for permission to make its final appeal.
Narine instead suggested a temporary injunction be granted until NGC filed its application for leave to appeal and for a permanent stay pending the eventual outcome of the appeal.
The case was adjourned to January 13, when the application for the permanent stay is expected to be heard. The dispute between the parties started last year after delays in the US$162,055,318.77 project, which was due to be completed on October 21.
The contract was eventually terminated on November 24 after SIS reportedly informed NGC it was unable to continue with the work "under the current circumstances and current conditions of the contract."
Arbitration proceedings have since been initiated to recover the $400 million that was allegedly advanced to the companies for the project.
SIS was represented by Neal Bisnath.