Marchand Navigation Company v Olam Global Agri Pte Ltd & Anor

[2023] SGHC 339 High Court (General Division) 29 November 2023 HC/OA 138/2023

4 cases cited (3 SG, 1 foreign)

Key facts

Court	High Court (General Division)
Decided	29 November 2023
Judge	Kwek Mean Luck
Charges / claim	Arbitration, Admiralty and Shipping
Counsel	August Law Corporation, DennisMathiew, Helmsman LLC, Deborah Koh Leng Hoon, Tan Hui Tsing, Tan Wen Cheng Adrian, Tan Yong Jin Jonathan, Teo Ke-Wei Ian

Source: [2023] SGHC 339, High Court (General Division), decided 29 November 2023 — eLitigation. Updated 10 July 2026.

Catchwords

Arbitration — Stay of court proceedings — What constituted a dispute Admiralty and Shipping — Carriage of goods by sea — Liens over sub-freights, sub-hires and demurrages and time for detention

Practice Areas

Arbitration Admiralty and Shipping

Judges (1)

Kwek Mean Luck Delivered

Counsel (8)

August Law Corporation Firm DennisMathiew Firm Helmsman LLC Firm Deborah Koh Leng Hoon Counsel for the plaintiff Tan Hui Tsing Counsel for the plaintiff Tan Wen Cheng Adrian Counsel for the defendant

Tan Yong Jin Jonathan Counsel for the defendant

Teo Ke-Wei Ian Counsel for the defendant

Parties (3)

Marchand Navigation Company Plaintiff

Olam Global Agri Pte Ltd Defendant

Sinco Shipping Pte Ltd Defendant

Case Significance

Marchand Navigation Company v Olam Global Agri Pte Ltd & Anor [2023] SGHC 339 is a decision of the General Division of the High Court delivered by Kwek Mean Luck J on 29 November 2023 in Originating Application No 138 of 2023. The case examines a shipowner's lien over sub-freights, sub-hires, demurrages and time for detention under clause 18 of the New York Produce Exchange 1946 time charter, an issue last considered by the Court of Appeal in Diablo Fortune Inc v Duncan, Cameron Lindsay [2018] 2 SLR 129, alongside a stay of court proceedings and what constituted a dispute. The claimant Marchand Navigation Company proceeded against Olam Global Agri Pte Ltd and Sinco Shipping Pte Ltd, with the matter citing four authorities under the Arbitration Act.

Summary

Marchand Navigation Company, a shipowner, sought to exercise a lien under clause 18 of an NYPE 1946 time charter over demurrage of US$190,112 owed by sub-charterer Olam Global Agri Pte Ltd to charterer Sinco Shipping Pte Ltd. The issues were whether a dispute over amounts due under the charter, and the presence of an arbitration clause, affected the owner's right to exercise the lien. Kwek Mean Luck J held they did not, ruled Marchand entitled to exercise the lien, and ordered the sum paid into court be paid out to Marchand.

What was Marchand Navigation v Olam Global Agri [2023] SGHC 339 about?

It was a General Division of the High Court matter decided by Kwek Mean Luck J on 29 November 2023, addressing a shipowner's lien over sub-freights and demurrages under clause 18 of the NYPE 1946 time charter, and a stay for arbitration.

What lien issue did Marchand Navigation v Olam [2023] SGHC 339 consider?

The case considered the nature of a shipowner's lien over sub-freights, sub-hires, demurrages and time for detention under the NYPE 1946 charter, revisiting the Court of Appeal's analysis in Diablo Fortune Inc v Duncan [2018] 2 SLR 129.