IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD R/ADMIRALTY SUIT NO. 55 of 2025 ========================================================== ZHESHANG ZHONGTUO (BEIJING) INTERNATIONAL SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT CO. LTD.

Versus MV HAI JIN JIANG SH ( IMO NO. 9579729 )

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Appearance:

MR PRASHANT PRATAP, SENIOR ADVOCATE with MR PULKIT DHAWAN, ADVOCATE MR DARSHANKUMAR R KABRA(11246) for the Plaintiff(s) No. 1 MR MANAV A MEHTA(3246) for the Plaintiff(s) No. 1 ==========================================================

CORAM:HONOURABLE MRS. JUSTICE MAUNA M. BHATT Date : 18/07/2025 ORAL ORDER

1. Learned Senior Advocate Prashant Pratap mentioned this matter for urgent circulation today and considering the urgency involved, the present matter is taken up for hearing today.

2. Heard Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Prashant Pratap assisted by Ld. Advocate Mr. Pulkit Dhawan along with Mr. Darshankumar Kabra for the Plaintiff.

3. Learned Senior Advocate has tendered Additional Affidavit dated 18^th July 2025 by which the Plaintiff seeks to produce documents marked as Annexure – “S” & Annexure – “T”, respectively. The same is taken on record.

4. Ld. Senior Advocate for the Plaintiff has placed reliance on the averments made in the plaint and submitted that the Plaintiff’s suit is in respect of a maritime claim against the Defendant Vessel arising out of loss or damage to or in connection with goods that were loaded on board the Defendant Vessel. Ld. Senior Advocate further submitted that the Plaintiff’s claim is also a maritime claim arising out of an agreement relating to the carriage of goods on board the Defendant Vessel contained in Bill of Lading dated 27^th March 2023 issued on behalf of the Master of the Defendant Vessel wherein the Plaintiff is the named Consignee and Notify Party under the Bill of Lading and is the holder of the original Bill of Lading.

5. Ld. Senior Advocate for the Plaintiff further submitted that on 17^th March 2023, the Plaintiff, as the buyer, entered into a Sales Contract for the Purchase of Petroleum Coke (Contract no. HT-ZT20230317-01) with the seller – Huatong Co., Ltd., a company registered in Korea. The Sales Contract stipulated that the Plaintiff would purchase 50,000 MT of Green Delayed Petroleum Coke (with a +/-10% tolerance at the Seller’s option) from Huatong under CFR terms, with a unit price of USD 172/metric ton, and the carrying vessel would be the Defendant Vessel “Hai Jin Jiang SH”.

6. Learned Senior Advocate further submitted that, on or about 20^th March 2023, one China Maritime Shipping Agency Tangshan Port Co. Ltd., who was the Chinese Agent of the Demise Charterer, was regularly in touch with the Plaintiff and Huatong, and informed them that the loading of the Cargo was completed and the Defendant Vessel was ready to sail from the loading port. The Plaintiff and Huatong confirmed to the agent of the Demise Charterer that the Cargo was to be discharged at Caofeidian Port in China.

7. Learned Senior Advocate further submitted that, pursuant to the instructions from the Demise Charterer, its Chinese Agent – China Maritime Shipping Agency Tangshan Port Co. Ltd., signed and issued Bill of Lading on behalf of the Master of the Defendant Vessel, naming the Plaintiff as the Consignee and the Notify Party. The port of discharge was stated as “Main Port China”, and it was subsequently agreed that the Cargo would be discharged at the port of Caofeidian, China.

8. Learned Senior Advocate for the Plaintiff further submitted that the Plaintiff made a number of enquiries with the Defendant Vessel’s and the Demise Charterer’s Chinese Agent with a view to ascertaining the Defendant Vessel’s movement and her estimated time of arrival at the Discharge Port. Learned Senior Advocate further submitted that on or around 27^th March 2023, the said Agent provided the Plaintiff with an email update from Ms. Yuki Zhou of Haijinjiang/ Demise Charterer which stated that “1230LT Anchor Up ETA Caof