GHANA NATIONAL GAS COMPANY LTD VRS GENSER ENERGY GHANA LTD

INTRODUCTION

This interlocutory appeal emanates from the Ruling of the High Court, Commercial Division, Accra, dated the 31st day of July, 2024, in which the learned trial Judge, dismissed the Defendant/ Applicant/ Appellant’s motion, seeking to dismiss the Plaintiff/ Respondent/ Respondent’s Writ of Summons on the ground of its failure to respond to a Notice to Admit pursuant to Order 23 Rule 6(2) of the High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2004 (C.I. 47).

In this Judgment, the Parties shall retain their original designations at the Court below.

THE FACTS OF THE CASE

The antecedent facts culminating in the instant appeal unfolded this way; In or around the 20th day of April, 2019, the parties entered into an agreement christened “GAS SALES AGREEMENT” in which the Plaintiff was to supply gas to the Defendant. It was part of the GSA that Board Resolutions from The Board of Directors of the parties were required to give effect to the GSA. It appears that both parties did not obtain the said resolutions from their respective Boards.

Pursuant to the said agreement, and irrespective of the said Board Resolutions, the Plaintiff supplied gas to the Defendant who begun making payment for the gas so supplied. This transaction continued until somewhere in the year 2020, when the Defendant defaulted in its payments for the gas supplied. Irrespective of persistent demands from the Plaintiff to the Defendant to make good its indebtedness, the Defendant was adamant. As at 2020, the Defendant’s indebtedness to the Plaintiff amounted to an amount of over Thirty Million US Dollars (usd 30,000,000.00). As the Defendant would not honour its obligations, the Plaintiff resorted to the Court to vindicate its rights under the GSA.

THE WRIT

The Plaintiff commenced the instant action on the 18th of November, 2022, against the Defendant for inter alia, the following reliefs:

A. The sum of $30,162,353.99, being the cost of natural gas supplied to the Defendant.

B. Interest on the sum in A above at the prevailing bank rate from January 2020 till the date of final payment.

C. Cost

D. Any other Order or Orders that the Honourable Court deems fit.

The Writ was issued together with a 41-paragrahed Statement of Claim which set out the basis of the Writ.

Upon being served with the Writ, the Defendant initiated a move to dismiss same by filing a motion to that effect on 15th December, 2022. Th