ONGC has won a major legal battle with the Delhi HC upholding the oil major’s decision not to award a Rs 2,702 crore contract to Malaysia-based Ramunia Fabricators Sdn Bhd.
Cancellation of contract to Malaysia firm on ground of “loss of confidence”
NEW DELHI: State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has won a major legal battle with the Delhi High Court upholding the oil major’s decision not to award a Rs 2,702 crore ($685 million) contract to Malaysia-based Ramunia Fabricators Sdn Bhd for development of the B-22 oil field in Mumbai offshore.
Ramunia International Services and Ramunia Fabricators Sdn Bhd, subsidiaries of Ramunia Holdings Bhd, Malaysia had been awarded the mega contract involving design, engineering and installation works for a cluster field in the Heera-Panna-Bassein block of Mumbai Offshore basin.
Later, ONGC cancelled the contract as L&T, aggrieved by this contract, moved the Supreme Court. The L&T lawsuit, however, became infructous when ONGC itself revised its decision.
Ramunia International and others then challenged ONGC’s reviewed decision before the High Court.
A division bench of Justices Manmohan Sarin and Veena Birbal ruled that ONGC is right in rejecting its bid for the project. “We are prima facie of the view that the plea of loss of confidence taken by the ONGC in the petitioners (Ramunia International and its subsidiaries) for having failed to furnish the performance guarantee appears to be justifiable deserving credence.”
The Malaysian concern had sought a direction to ONGC for awarding it the contract, which was earlier given to L&T but later cancelled, paving the way for fresh bidding.
ONGC had invited bids in May 2007 for its B-22 field development project in which L&T and the Malaysian firm had participated. While awarding the contract to L&T, ONGC had rejected the bid of the Ramunia firms on the ground that the tender documents submitted by them had been purchased by one company and the bid was submitted by the other.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}