Grain Marketing Board Demands US$200 000 For Groundnuts
THE Grain Marketing Board (GMB) has dragged a local company Reapers (Pvt) Ltd to court demanding payment of US$200 000 for groundnuts exported to South Africa in 2018.
GMB is seeking leave to execute a High Court ruling directing the company to pay the government grain US$200 000.
Court papers show parties had entered into an agreement for Reapers to export the groundnuts.
However, the company is now contesting paying US$199 684, 24 and wants to return groundnuts that were not exported out of 232 188 metric tonnes.
The court heard in January 2018, the parties entered into an agreement to jointly supply shelled groundnuts to a South African registered company called Casmara (Pvt) Ltd (Casmara).
This was followed by an addendum signed on January 30 which duly amended some of the terms of the agreement.
GMB then approached the court seeking payment of 80 percent of the proceeds received or due by Casmara (Pvt) Ltd together with payment of US$199 684, 24 as its pro rata share of the sold ground nuts.
This was after the parties had failed to agree on the implementation of the agreement and GMB further sought an order to uplift 232 188 metric tonnes of groundnuts from Reapers Rusape depot which was 80 percent of the unsold groundnuts.
The court heard Reapers opposed the claim stating that GMB’s contribution amounted to 53, 87 percent of the value of the receipts and not 80 percent.
The disputes resulted in a High Court order being granted in favour of GMB for Reapers to pay 80 percent of all proceeds received and due from Casmara subtracting what had already been paid.
“The applicant is entitled to 80 percent of the 290 235 metric tonnes of the groundnuts which had not been exported and that respondent deducts 156 727 metric tonnes already collected by applicant,” read the said order.
“In the event that the respondent is unable to render specific performance in respect of the groundnuts which were not exported, the respondent shall pay the applicant, the value of the groundnuts at the rate which Casmara bought them.”
However, on May 20, Reapers noted an appeal against the judgement in the Supreme Court.
GMB says the appeal is incompetent.
“The appeal filed by the respondent is an abuse of the court process and a dilatory tactic aimed at delaying the performance or execution of the judgement of this court and in particular the delivery of the groundnuts which were not exported, as ordered by the court,” said GMB chief executive officer Rockie Mutenha.
