Bombay High Court
Ocean Sparkle Limited vs Oil And Natural Gas Corporation ... on 23 August, 2022
Bench: G. S. Kulkarni
Digitally
signed by
VIDYA VIDYA
SURESH AMIN
SURESH Date:
AMIN 2022.08.24
15:00:50
+0530
1 905.CARBP135_2022.doc
Vidya Amin
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION
COMMERCIAL ARBITRATION PETITION NO. 135 OF 2022
Ocean Sparkle Ltd. .. Petitioner
Vs.
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. & Anr. .. Respondents
Mr. Prathamesh Kamat a/w. Ms. Ronika Kulkarni i/b. Bhatt & Saldanha
for the petitioner.
Mr. Nishit Dhruva, Yash Dhruva, Ms. Khusbu Chhajed, Atharva Diwe i/b.
MDP & Partners for respondent no.1.
CORAM : G.S. KULKARNI, J.
DATE : AUGUST 23, 2022.
P.C.:
1. The petitioner has moved this petition which was disposed of by
the judgment and order dated 6 June, 2022 passed by this Court. In
disposing of the petition, the Court had passed the following order:
"33. As a result of the above discussion, the petition is partly allowed
in terms of the following order:-
ORDER
(i) Pending the arbitral proceedings, respondent No.1 ONGC
is directed to deposit in this Court, within a period of four weeks
from today, the amount payable to the petitioner under the
unpaid invoices dated 31 March 2021 and 30 April 2021,
'Exhibit A' and 'Exhibit B' respectively.
(ii) After the deposit of the above amounts is received by the
Prothonotary and Senior Master of this Court, the Prothonotary
and Senior Master of this Court shall invest the said amount in
a fixed deposit in a nationalized bank initially for a period of
three years.
(iii) Respondent No.1-ONGC is directed not to invoke the
performance bank guarantee dated 7 March 2018 as extended.
(iv) The petitioner is directed to invoke the arbitral
proceedings within a period of one month from today.
2 905.CARBP135_2022.doc
(v) All contentions of the parties on the arbitral proceedings
are expressly kept open.
(vi) Disposed of in the above terms. No costs."
2. The petitioner's case as made out in the praecipe is that the
amount of USD 216716.85 as directed by this Court was deposited in
two tranches. Subsequent thereto, the parties have entered into a
Settlement Agreement to settle the disputes in regard to OSL's platform
supply vessel 'OSD Glory', a copy of such Settlement Agreement dated
10 August, 2022 is placed on record. In paragraphs 1 and 2 of the
Settlement Agreement, it has been agreed between the parties that they
shall jointly intimate this Court of the settlement agreed between the
parties and apply to the Court praying that the principal amount as
deposited in this Court to be returned to the petitioner and accrued
interest, if any, shall be returned to the respondent-ONGC. Clauses 1
and 2 of the Settlement Agreement reads thus:
"1) In consideration of withdrawal of the arbitral notice by OSL,
ONGC agrees to make payment of the sum of US $ 324,847.01 (United
States Dollars Three Hundred Twenty Four Thousand Eight Hundred
Forty Seven) (calculation annexed at Annexure-A), out of which USD
2,16,716.85 has already been deposited in the High Court. The
remaining amount i.e. USD 1,08,130.16 shall be paid to M/s. OSL
within a period of 10 days Indian and/or United States of America
banking days from the date of execution of this Settlement Agreement
to the bank account details mentioned below:
Name of Bank : State Bank of India
USD A/c. No. : 102 605 40137
SWIFT Code : SBININBB134
Address : Overseas Branch, Plot No. 241/A, Rajala
Towers, Road No. 36, Jubilee Hills,
Hyderabad, Telangana - 500 033.
2) Within three (3) working days of receipt of the said sum of US $
3 905.CARBP135_2022.doc
1,08,130.16, OSL and ONGC's Solicitors shall jointly intimate to the
Hon'ble Bombay High Court of the settlement being reached between
the parties and shall apply for the sum of US $ 2,16,716.85 deposited
in the Hon'ble Bombay High Court to be returned to OSL and accrued
interest, if any on the deposited amount, to be returned to ONGC.
Osl's Solicitors will advise the Court of OSL withdrawing the Arbitral
Notice."
3. It is on the above premise this petition has been moved jointly by
the parties that the amounts be permitted to be withdrawn. Learned
counsel for the respondents would also not have any objection for this
Court to pass orders for return of the amounts as agreed between them
in the Settlement Agreement and as noted above.
4. Accordingly, the office is directed to release the amounts as
deposited by the respondents in terms of what has been agreed in
paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Settlement Agreement, namely, that the
principal amount of USD 2,16,716.85 be returned to the petitioner and
the accrued interest, if any, be returned to the respondent-ONGC.
5. No further orders are required to be passed.
[G.S. KULKARNI, J.]
