P & P Engineering v Kori Construction: Breach of Contract & Damages Dispute

In a suit before the High Court of Singapore, P & P Engineering & Construction Pte Ltd (“PPE”) sued Kori Construction (S) Pte Ltd (“Kori”) to recover $376,334.93 for manpower supplied and $893,273.36 for steel fabrication work. Kori counterclaimed for $719,165.83 for excess fabricated steel materials and $543.73 for various charges. The court found that the Fabrication Contract was not terminated and that PPE did undertake steel fabrication work for Kori after March 2016. The court ordered Kori to verify and certify PPE's delivery orders and ordered Kori to pay PPE 80% of the costs of the action.

1. Case Overview

1.1 Court

High Court of the Republic of Singapore

1.2 Outcome

Judgment for Plaintiff

1.3 Case Type

Civil

1.4 Judgment Type

Judgment

1.5 Jurisdiction

Singapore

1.6 Description

P & P Engineering sued Kori Construction for unpaid manpower and steel fabrication work. Kori counterclaimed for excess steel materials. The court found in favor of P & P Engineering.

1.7 Decision Date

2. Parties and Outcomes

Party NameRoleTypeOutcomeOutcome TypeCounsels
P & P Engineering & Construction Pte LtdPlaintiffCorporationJudgment for PlaintiffWon
Kori Construction (S) Pte LtdDefendantCorporationCounterclaim partially allowedPartial

3. Judges

Judge NameTitleDelivered Judgment
Tan Lee MengSenior JudgeYes

4. Counsels

Counsel NameOrganization
Andrew J HanamAndrew LLC
Twang Kern ZernCentral Chambers Law Corporation
Simone B ChettiarCentral Chambers Law Corporation

4. Facts

  1. P & P Engineering provided manpower and steel fabrication services to Kori Construction for the Thomson MRT Line project.
  2. Kori Construction was a sub-contractor to Taisei Corporation for construction work at the Marina Bay MRT Station.
  3. Disputes arose regarding payments due to P & P Engineering under the Manpower Contract and the Fabrication Contract.
  4. Kori Construction claimed it terminated the Fabrication Contract on 3 April 2016, but P & P Engineering denied receiving the termination letter.
  5. Kori Construction counterclaimed for the cost of excess steel materials sold to P & P Engineering.
  6. P & P Engineering submitted delivery orders for steel fabrication work after the alleged termination date, which Kori Construction did not verify or certify until after a letter of demand was sent.
  7. The parties disputed the price of the excess fabricated steel materials sold by Kori Construction to P & P Engineering.

5. Formal Citations

  1. P & P Engineering & Construction Pte Ltd v Kori Construction (S) Pte Ltd, Suit No 1255 of 2016, [2018] SGHC 277

6. Timeline

DateEvent
Manpower Contract quotation by P & P Engineering
Manpower Contract Purchase Order by Kori Construction
Fabrication Contract Letter of Award by Kori Construction
Kori Construction certified P & P Engineering's December 2015 and February 2016 claims
Alleged termination date of Fabrication Contract by Kori Construction
Alleged termination date of Fabrication Contract by Kori Construction
P & P Engineering submitted delivery orders to Kori Construction
P & P Engineering was paid $86,028.00
Kori Construction sold excess fabricated steel materials to P & P Engineering
P & P Engineering submitted delivery orders to Kori Construction
Meeting between Mr. Hooi and Mr. Pugaz regarding sale of excess steel materials
P & P Engineering submitted delivery orders to Kori Construction
P & P Engineering submitted delivery orders to Kori Construction
Andrew LLC sent a letter of demand to Kori Construction
Kori Construction wrote to P & P Engineering to take back delivery orders
Kori Construction filed Defence and Counterclaim
Trial began
Settlement reached on manpower claim and counterclaim for expenses
Hearing date
Hearing date
Judgment reserved

7. Legal Issues

  1. Breach of Contract
    • Outcome: The court found that Kori Construction breached the Fabrication Contract by failing to verify and certify delivery orders and by wrongfully claiming termination of the contract.
    • Category: Substantive
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Failure to pay for manpower supplied
      • Failure to pay for steel fabrication work
      • Wrongful termination of contract
  2. Damages for Breach of Contract
    • Outcome: The court ordered Kori Construction to verify and certify P & P Engineering's delivery orders to determine the amount of damages owed.
    • Category: Substantive
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Calculation of damages
      • Mitigation of damages
  3. Contract Variation
    • Outcome: The court found that there was no agreement to amend the Fabrication Contract and reduce the price of the fabricated steel materials to $300 per metric tonne for future claims.
    • Category: Substantive
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Agreement to reduce price
      • Lack of written agreement

8. Remedies Sought

  1. Monetary Damages

9. Cause of Actions

  • Breach of Contract

10. Practice Areas

  • Commercial Litigation
  • Construction Disputes

11. Industries

  • Construction

12. Cited Cases

Case NameCourtAffirmedCitationJurisdictionSignificance
Nam Hong Construction & Engineering Pte Ltd v Kori Construction (S) Pte LtdCourt of AppealYes[2016] 4 SLR 604SingaporeCited to overrule the court below and hold that licensing requirements under the Building Control Act did not apply to sub-contractors.

13. Applicable Rules

Rule Name
No applicable rules

14. Applicable Statutes

Statute NameJurisdiction
Building Control Act (Cap 29, 1999 Rev Ed)Singapore

15. Key Terms and Keywords

15.1 Key Terms

  • Manpower Contract
  • Fabrication Contract
  • Delivery Orders
  • Excess Fabricated Steel Materials
  • Termination Letter
  • Interim Payment Certificates
  • Thomson MRT Line

15.2 Keywords

  • contract
  • breach
  • damages
  • construction
  • manpower
  • steel fabrication
  • MRT
  • Singapore

17. Areas of Law

Area NameRelevance Score
Breach of Contract90
Contract Law85
Damages70
Construction Contracts50
Company Law30

16. Subjects

  • Contract Law
  • Construction Law
  • Breach of Contract
  • Damages