Conti Caressa Schiffahrtsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG MS “Conti Esperance” v. Offshore Oil Engineering Co., Ltd.

Abstract

The Plaintiff, Conti Caressa Schiffahrtsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, owner of the MS “Conti Esperance” brought this action to recover damages, including repair costs and lost wages, from a collision that occurred on May 18, 2010 against the Defendant, Offshore Oil Engineering Co., Ltd. In response, Offshore Oil argued that some of the repairs made by the Plaintiff in South Africa were unreasonable, and could have been done for a much lower rate in China, and the court should only find it liable in the “reasonable” amount that the ship could have been repaired in China. Additionally, Offshore Oil argued that the damage to M.V. MS “Conti Esperance” suffered in this case was caused by the collision between M.V. “Offshore Oil 225” and M.V. “Hua Dian 8” and that the Defendant should only bear liability in accordance with its proportional fault of the collision between M.V. “Offshore Oil 225” and M.V. “Hua Dian 8”. The Court held that Offshore Oil failed to prove that “Hua Dian 8” bore any liability towards the collision with MS “Conti Esperance” and that the Defendant owed the Plaintiff RMB461,785.99, which included certain deductions for unreasonable repairs that did not stem from the accident, plus interest.