We are pleased to announce that Argus Partners successfully represented Thermax Limited before the Hon’ble Bombay High Court in setting aside an arbitral award in a dispute with Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilizers Limited (RCF) arising out of a contract of supply, erection, installation and commissioning of 2 X 25 MW GTG (Industrial heavy duty Gas Turbo Generator) and 2 X 100 TPH HRSG (Heat Recovery Steam Generator) at RCF’s site at Thal, Maharashtra.

The Hon’ble Bombay High Court, while setting aside the arbitral award, held that the arbitral award suffered from patent illegality as it disregarded vital documentary evidence, failed to provide adequate reasoning, and incorrectly allowed claims for "consequential losses" which were expressly barred under the contract. The Hon’ble Bombay High Court also directed RCF to refund Rs. 218.45 crores along with 6% interest p.a. which was deposited by Thermax with RCF pending the outcome of the petition for challenging the arbitral award.

The judgement is of significant importance as it reinforces the evidentiary standards required in arbitration proceedings and the limited but vital scope of judicial review under Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act. The judgement also sets an important precedent on exclusion clauses under a contract, specifically in relation to "direct losses" and "consequential losses". 

The Argus team involved R. Sudhinder, and Ranjit Shetty (Senior Partners), Rahul Dev (Partner), and Monika Vyas (Associate).