Trans-Tec Asia v. M/V Harmony v. Containe

BACKGROUND

Splendid Shipping Sendirian Berhad (“Splendid”)2 is a Malaysian corporation that owns the M/V Harmony Con- tainer (“Harmony”), a Malaysian-flagged vessel. In June 2000, Splendid entered into a charter-party with Kien Hung Shipping Company (“Kien Hung”) for a ten-year charter of the Harmony. Kien Hung, a Taiwanese corporation, operated the Harmony in a loop from ports in North and South Amer- ica to ports in Japan, China, and Korea. In particular, the Har- mony made regular stops at Long Beach, California, and Man- zanillo, Mexico.

In early February 2003, one of Kien Hung’s managers sought a price quote for fuel bunkers. The manager contacted an agent at Yee Foo Marine Industrial Co. Ltd. (“Yee Foo”), who requested a price quote from Trans-Tec Asia (“Trans- Tec”), a Singaporean entity. An employee for Trans-Tec faxed a quote to the Yee Foo agent, who forwarded the quote to Kien Hung. The Kien Hung manager then faxed back an order to the Yee Foo agent, who forwarded the order to Trans- Tec. In response, Trans-Tec sent a one-page email confirma- tion (“Bunker Confirmation”) to Yee Foo for the sale of 1150 metric tons of fuel bunkers to be supplied to the Harmony at a…