Maersk A/S v Mercuria Energy Trading SA – QBD (Comm Ct) (HHJ Pelling QC sitting as a Judge of the High Court) [2021] EWHC 2856 (Comm) – 11 October 2021

Practice – Anti-suit injunction – Contracts of carriage of copper ingots containing exclusive English jurisdiction clause and one-year time bar – Cargo owners bringing proceedings in Turkey against carriers and others – Carrier applying for anti-suit injunction – Whether injunction should be refused on grounds of delay or of prejudice to cargo owners by reason of time-bar

On 1 June 2021 the defendant (Mercuria) purchased 4,000 mt of copper blister ingots from a Turkish seller on cif China terms at a total price of US$45 million. Maersk, acting by its local agent, entered into a contract of carriage with the seller contained in or evidenced by five bills of lading for shipment to China of the copper Mercuria had purchased. The remainder of the copper was to be shipped by another ship operator, MSC. The bills of lading contained both a contractual one-year time bar and an exclusive English jurisdiction clause.