PAKISTAN PETROLEUM LTD. vs SPEC ENERGY DMCC R — 2022 CLC 1412 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH

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PAKISTAN PETROLEUM LTD. VS SPEC ENERGY DMCC R.42---Sale of Goods Act (II of 1930), S.58---Civil Procedure Code (V of 1908), O.XXXIX, Rr.1 & 2---Specific Relief Act (I of 1877), Ss.12 & 21(a)---Suit for specific performance of agreement---Interim relief, refusal of---Public procurement---Discretion---Alternative methods of procurement---Plaintiff company was awarded contract for natural gas processing facility---Lump sum payments were to be made to plaintiff under the contract against completion of specific milestones and not against any delivery of specific equipment---Defendant authorities terminated the contract for failure of plaintiff company to achieve required milestones in time frame fixed in contract---Validity---Defendant authorities issued purchase orders and contracts entered into because of extreme urgency created by plaintiff's failure to complete project almost three years after completion date---Continued extraction and resulting depletion of gas from same reservoir by other companies from adjacent fields and further delay would result in the purpose of the project defeated as no gas could be left to produce---Even if such purchase orders were issued and contracts were entered in violation of Public Procurement Rules, 2004, that would not entitle plaintiff to specific performance of the contract and at the best it required defendant authorities to issue new tenders for the equipment and remaining work resulting in the contract to remain terminated---Unless plaintiff proved otherwise, Court had to presume that money was adequate compensation for breach of contract---Contract could not be specifically enforced and no injunction could be granted to prevent its breach---Plaintiff failed to establish that money would not adequately compensate it for breach of contract, even if the contract was an agreement for sale of goods, it could not be specifically enforced under S.58 of Sale of Goods Act, 1930---Even if restrictions under Ss.12 & 21 of Specific Relief Act, 1877, could be circumvented and it was not an agreement for specific and ascertained goods---Plaintiff could provide defendant authorities with any Amine or HCDP package---High Court was to decide a private dispute in its civil original jurisdiction under S.9, C.P.C., which jurisdiction was circumscribed by law---High Court could not grant any relief which was specifically barred by a statute---High Court was bound by restrictions prescribed in Specific Relief Act, 1877---Relief of injunction was discretionary and Court was not bound to grant it in every case and it was not to be granted unless Court was satisfied as to its real need---Discretion was to be exercised in accordance with reasons and sound judicial principles---Court while dealing with application for grant of injunction had to look and assess all circumstances obtaining the suit and more so to equitable relief---Discretion vested in Court of law had to be exercised judicially and equitably ensuring all the times that justice was adequately applied and administered---High Court declined to grant interim injunction in favour of plaintiff as it failed to make out a prima facie case in its favour---Application was dismissed, in circumstances.

PAKISTAN PETROLEUM LTD. vs SPEC ENERGY DMCC R — 2022 CLC 1412 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH

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