Mestaco again files legal suit against BP West Java

PT Mestaco Swarnadwipa has again filed a legal suit against BP West Java, a subsidiary of oil giant BP PLc, at the South Jakarta civil court for not inviting the former to take part in the procurement tender made by the latter. In its legal suit, the plaintiff demands the accused to pay a compensation worth US$70.37 million.

The suit against BP West Java is the second time made by Mestaco. But unlike the first one, which was filed in November 2001, the compensation demanded by Mestaco in the latest suit is much smaller although the materials taken by the plaintiff to the court remain the same.

In the latest legal suit, Mestaco did not provide any proofs to support its compensation demand. In the first legal suit, Mestaco demanded compensation totaling US$650 million but it was turned down by the South Jakarta court. In the second suit, the plaintiff demanded compensation totaling US$70.37 million.

In the middle of 2001, after a thorough assessment, BP found a strange liquid in the Halon 1301 tubes supplied by its vendors. With the help of the Indonesian police and a Singapore-based laboratory, BP later found out that the Halon 1301 tubes supplied by Mestaco contained Dichloromethane, a type of an inflammable chemical substance. As a consequence, BP decided not to re-invite the Mestaco to take part in its procurement tender.

Mestaco did not accept BP’s decision on the ground that the Halon 1301 it supplied to BP had been used and paid.

BP West Java, through its defense lawyers, rejected all the charges made by Mestaco and demanded the court to once again turn down all the company’s demand (*)