The-Patron

The Orissa High Court has ordered the arrest of the 'The Patron' near Paradip Port following an admiralty suit filed by Singapore-based JALDHI Overseas Pte Ltd seeking recovery of $202,000. The matter was taken up urgently by the vacation bench of Justice M.S. Raman after the plaintiff’s counsel expressed concern that the vessel could leave Indian waters shortly. By special notice, the court commenced the hearing on Dec 26, 2025, at 4:45 p.m. JALDHI Overseas initiated proceedings under Section 5 of the Admiralty (Jurisdiction and Settlement of Maritime Claims) Act, 2017, claiming that the vessel owners had breached the terms of the charter party. The company stated that it had chartered the 'The Patron' to transport 75,000 metric tonnes of rock phosphate from Jordan to Paradip. However, an engine failure in Aug 2025 caused a sharp reduction in speed, resulting in a prolonged delay. The court records noted that the vessel’s speed dropped from the agreed 12.5 knots in ballast and 12 knots when laden to just 7.98 knots, delaying the voyage from Khor Fakkan to Paradip to approximately 21.58 days instead of the contractual 8.58 days.

sold for $ 14.7m to Indian buyers (SNP Shipping Services)