Insights

Following the advent of COVID-19, many ports have imposed quarantine restrictions on ships arriving from affected areas or with possible infection on-board. There have also been associated delays due to the closure or restriction of operations in certain ports or unavailability of cargo. Against this backdrop, we have seen various disputes as to whether hire should be payable for the duration of such delays. Can a charterer legitimately refuse to pay hire during periods of delay due to the virus?

新冠病毒对定期租船合同下租金支付义务的影响 新冠病毒出现后，许多港口对来自疫情地区的船舶或船上出现疑似感染病例的船舶实施了隔离管制措施。随着某些港口关闭或限制作业，或出现无法取得货物的问题，迟延问题随之发生。在这种背景下，围绕着迟延期间租金是否应付的问题出现了各种纠纷。租家是否有权拒绝支付因病毒引起的迟延期间的租金？

The recent months have seen an unprecedented surge in the use of tankers as floating storage for oil and petroleum products caused by a perfect storm of collapsing demand for such products due to the COVID-19 pandemic - leading to the rapid overwhelming of onshore storage capacity - together with falling oil prices. The use of a tanker for such storage may have a range of practical and legal implications that arise from using a ship in a manner that was not contemplated or specifically provided for by the relevant charterparty.

新冠病毒疫情加剧浮式储油风险 近几个月来，由于新冠病毒疫情导致石油及油类产品需求锐减，使用油轮作为浮式储油库储存石油及油类产品达到了前所未有的高峰——新冠病毒疫情导致在岸存储容量迅速用尽——同时伴随着油价下跌。由于使用油轮储存石油及油类产品，并非相关租约设定的或者具体规定的使用方式，这可能会带来一系列实务上和法律上的影响。

There are two main types of guarantee: “see to it” guarantees, where the guarantor is only liable to pay out if the underlying debtor is found liable to the creditor, and “demand” guarantees, where the guarantor is liable to pay out against the creditor’s demand, irrespective of whether or not the underlying liability is proven. The difference can clearly be crucial for the party seeking to draw down on the guarantee as demonstrated in the recent case of Shanghai Shipyard Co. Ltd. v Reignwood International Investment (Group) Company Ltd [2020] EWHC 803 (Comm).