SPL CONSTRUCTION LTD vs BLUE OCEAN INVESTMENTS LTD

Her Ladyship Akua Sarpomaa Amoah of the High Court addressed a contempt application arising from interlocutory orders in a contract dispute between SPL Construction and Blue Ocean Investments concerning pipeline works at Blue Ocean’s terminal. The Court had stayed the substantive claims due to an arbitration clause, but ordered appointment of an expert and directed Blue Ocean not to use or alter the pipelines until the expert’s report. SPL alleged Blue Ocean defied these directives by backfilling trenches and operating heavy equipment near pipelines; Blue Ocean denied, attributing temporary backfilling to neighboring Zen Oil Limited and safety concerns acknowledged by the court-appointed expert. The Court focused on procedural compliance and held that the contempt application was improperly served only on counsel, not personally on Blue Ocean’s directors or officers, contrary to Order 50, Section 291 of the Companies Act, and the Supreme Court’s guidance in Ex parte Millicom. The Court also found non-compliance with mandatory Order 43 requirements for prior personal service of the order with a penal notice, dismissed the application, and awarded costs of GH¢ 3,000.