【英语中国】中国因商业纠纷被扣邮轮将离开韩国

The detention of a Chinese cruise ship in a South Korean port over the weekend was lifted on Monday, but the incident, which ensnared more than 1,500 cruise passengers, highlighted both the thorny legal environment in China's shipping industry and the business practices of a Chinese conglomerate that has been a target of legal action overseas.

The Chinese cruise ship was seized Friday in the port of the South Korean island of Jeju, stranding more than 2,300 people, including passengers and crew members. The conglomerate, HNA Group, said a local court seized the 223-meter luxury cruise liner on behalf of Chinese shipping company Shagang Shipping Co. in an attempt to recover unpaid debts from HNA unit Grand China Logistics.

The Jeju District Court said Monday afternoon that the court order had been lifted. Most of the passengers had already returned to China by planes chartered by the cruise operator, another unit of HNA, which is one on China's largest non-state-owned conglomerates.

The legal brawl behind the detention dates back to a 2008 ship-charter contract, signed at a time when the global cargo-shipping market was thriving. The dispute between Shagang Shipping and Grand China follows claims by other shipping operators over unpaid charter dues involving HNA, which controls many tourism-related assets in China including Hainan Airlines, the nation's fourth-biggest listed airline by revenue.

'HNA still owes us $58 million. We'll never give up and continue to protect our right legally,' said Zhang Jie, general manager at Shagang Shipping, in a phone call on Monday.

Grand China on Monday didn't deny that the debt was unpaid but said it no longer owned the shipping arm which incurred the debt.

At the heart of the dispute is a contract under which Grand China chartered a large commodities cargo ship from Shagang Shipping. for a term of around seven years at fixed rates. HNA acted as guarantor for Grand China on the transaction.

But in the time between the agreement and the ship's April 2010 delivery, the world's shipping market collapsed amid a sharp slowdown in resources demand, particularly from China. Daily vessel-hiring rates for large Capesize ships such as the one chartered to Grand China fell to as low as several thousand U.S. dollars from its 2008 peak of nearly $190,000. Daily rates for Capsize ships, which are commonly used in transportation of coal, iron ore and commodity raw materials, now stand at around $29,000.

Shagang Shipping, previously a unit of Shagang Group, China's biggest non-state-owned steelmaker, says the shipping arm of Grand China stopped making charter payments from October 2010. Shagang Group is no longer invested in Shagang Shipping.

The Hong Kong-registered status of the companies made it difficult for Shagang Shipping to seek legal redress in mainland China. The contract specifically stated that disputes would be resolved via British laws, with Hong Kong's legal system reflecting its former status as a British colony.

Shagang Shipping in 2011 won claims against Grand China following arbitration in London for over $7 million in unpaid charter dues. It said the debt was paid only after Shagang asked authorities in India to seize a cargo ship leased by an HNA unit that had traveled to a local port in March of that year.

Wen Jiang, a vice president at Grand China, said Friday's seizure of the luxury cruise was the first time Shagang Shipping seized assets directly owned by HNA.

According to Shagang Shipping, Grand China also defaulted on later charter payments, resulting in the return of the ship in January 2012. Shagang Shipping continued to seek unpaid charter fees from Grand China, and in November last year received a new judgment from a London maritime arbitration court ruling that Grand China owed the company $58 million.

As part of its efforts to recover unpaid debts from Grand China, Shagang Shipping turned to the Jeju court to seize HNA assets.

Other foreign companies that have cited claims against Grand China over unpaid charter dues include Norway's Spar Shipping AS, Greece's Vafias Group, South Korea's Hyundai Merchant Marine Co., and Hong Kong-based Titan Petrochemicals Group. The current status of these disputes is unclear and Grand China didn't offer any comments on them on Monday. In the past it has said it would work with the companies to resolve the disputes.

Hong Kong-based dry-bulk shipper Jinhui Shipping & Transportation Ltd., which is listed in Oslo, is seeking up to US$29 million in compensation from a Grand China unit involving two vessel-charter agreements signed in 2010 at a daily rate of US$23,000. The claim is proceeding through arbitration in London, according to Jinhui Vice President Raymond Ching.

'We'll continue to pursue our legal right to get back the money,' said Mr. Ching.

HNA has said that any delays in payments were a question of fairness, as long-term contracts had locked the company into paying prices well above spot rates.

Mr. Wen, the Grand China Logistics vice president, said at a media briefing in Shanghai on Monday that Shagang Shipping's seizure had no legal standing because it remains unclear whether HNA should bear the liability for its guarantee and how much it should bear.

Mr. Wen said Shagang Shipping managed to make the dispute highly publicized by seizing a cruise liner outside China. He said Grand China sold its shipping arm to a company registered in the Marshall Islands for $1 in 2011. He declined to name the buyer.

'Grand China Logistics has no obligation to help Grand China Shipping repay debts,' he said. 'Neither does the HNA Group unless the court says it should undertake the liability for its guarantee.'

The complaints against Grand China follow a major dispute in 2011 when shipping giant China Cosco Holdings Ltd. 601919.SH +0.29% temporarily halted some charter payments in a move to force renegotiation of expensive agreements that were also signed at the height of a global shipping boom. China Cosco has said it subsequently resolved the disputes, in which at least one ship was temporarily detained.

The incident comes as the cruise industry has been trying to generate more business in China, home to the world's most valuable outbound tourism market. Cruise operator Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. RCL +1.53% last year launched a new ship to entice Chinese tourists, increasing the number of trips from China to Southeast Asia, South Korea and Japan. Most of the investment for cruise ships has been foreign, according to the China Cruise & Yacht Industry Association, which says HNA is the first locally registered cruise operator.

Local governments are, however, investing in cruise infrastructure, with investments in the coastal cities of Shanghai and Tianjin alone topping 12.3 billion yuan ($2 billion) in recent years, according to estimates from Royal Caribbean.

HNA's tourism arm last year unveiled the Henna, the luxury liner that was detained in South Korea, for tours to Vietnam from the southern city of Sanya and to South Korea from the northern city of Tianjin.

A spokeswoman for Royal Caribbean said the company doesn't think the recent incidents with HNA will affect cruise travel. Most consumers are aware that this is an issue between two companies, not an issue of safety, said the spokeswoman. A representative of the China Cruise & Yacht Industry Association said that hiccups in the nascent industry are inevitable but are not likely to hinder the already rapid development.

上周末针对停靠在韩国一个港口的一艘中国邮轮的扣留令在周一被解除，但这一造成逾1,500名旅客滞留的事件一方面凸显出中国海运业困难重重的法律环境，另一方面暴露出在海外遭遇法律诉讼的一家中国企业集团的商业实践。

Kim Ho-chun/Yonhap/Associated Press图片：“海娜号”邮轮滞留乘客回国这艘中国邮轮上周五在韩国济州岛被扣留，造成包括乘客和船员在内的逾2,300人滞留。海航集团(HNA Group)称，当地一家法院代表中国航运公司沙钢船务有限公司(Shagang Shipping Co.)扣留了这艘全长223米的豪华邮轮，沙钢船务这样做是为了从海航集团旗下大新华物流(Grand China Logistics)收回未偿债务。

济州地方法院周一下午称，法院的扣留令已被解除。多数乘客已经乘坐邮轮运营商（海航集团另一子公司）安排的飞机返回中国。海航集团是中国最大的非国有企业集团之一。

这起扣船事件背后的法律纠纷始于2008年一份在全球货运市场繁荣期签订的租船合同。在沙钢船务与大新华物流出现纠纷前，其他船运公司曾就牵涉海航集团的拖欠租金行为提起过诉讼。海航集团掌控着在中国的许多旅游相关资产，包括海南航空股份有限公司(Hainan Airlines Co.)。按收入计，海南航空是中国第四大上市航空公司。

沙钢船务总经理张洁周一在电话中表示，海航集团仍欠我们5,800万美元，我们永远不会放弃，并将继续依法维护我们的权利。

大新华物流周一没有否认拖欠债务一事，但表示，该公司已不再拥有欠下这笔债务的船运公司。

这起纠纷的核心问题在于大新华物流以固定租金从沙钢船务租用一艘大吨位货船的合同，合同期限为7年左右。海航集团为大新华物流这笔交易的提供担保。

但在协议达成至2010年4月份交船期间这段时间，由于资源需求（尤其是中国的需求）大幅放缓，全球船运市场受到冲击。类似大新华租用的这艘货船的大型海岬型船的日租金从2008年的近19万美元最低跌至几千美元。海岬型船的日租金目前在2.9万美元左右。这种船通常用于运输煤炭、铁矿石和大宗商品原材料。

Reuters中国邮轮“海娜号”停靠在韩国济州岛的港口，照片摄于9月13日。曾经是沙钢集团(Shagang Group)子公司的沙钢船务说，大新华物流的船运子公司自2010年10月份开始停止支付租金。沙钢集团是中国最大的非国有钢企，现已不再投资于沙钢船务。

由于涉事公司在香港注册，因此沙钢船务难以在中国大陆寻求法律赔偿。合同书也特别指出纠纷将通过英国法来解决。香港的法律体系反映出其以前曾经是英国殖民地这一事实。

沙钢船务在2011年赢得对大新华物流的诉讼，英国仲裁庭裁定大新华物流向沙钢船务支付逾700万美元拖欠租金。沙钢船务说，在该公司在同年3月份要求印度当局扣留行驶至当地一个港口的海航集团一家子公司租用的货船后这笔债务才被支付。

大新华物流副总裁文江说，上周五豪华邮轮被扣一事是沙钢船务首次扣留海航集团直接所有的资产。

据沙钢船务称，大新华物流还拖欠了之后的租金，导致2012年货船被退回。沙钢船务继续寻求从大新华获得拖欠租金，该公司在去年11月份从伦敦海事仲裁庭获得了有关大新华欠该公司5,800万美元的新仲裁结果。

沙钢船务向济州法院申请查封海航资产，这是该公司从大新华物流追讨欠款的努力的一部分。

因拖欠船租而对大新华物流提出索赔的其他外国企业包括挪威的Spar Shipping AS、希腊的Vafias Group、韩国的Hyundai Merchant Marine Co.和香港的泰山石化集团(Titan Petrochemicals Group)。这些纠纷目前的状态不得而知，大新华物流周一对此未予置评。该公司过去一直说，它将与各公司一起解决纠纷。

香港干散货航运公司金辉航运(Jinhui Shipping & Transportation Ltd.)正寻求从大新华物流的一个子公司获得最高2,900万美元的赔偿，此事涉及到2010年签订的两份租船协议，协议的日租金为2.3万美元。据金辉航运副总裁程伟文(Raymond Ching)说，正在伦敦通过仲裁解决索赔问题。该公司在奥斯陆上市。

程伟文说，我们将继续争取我们追回欠款的法律权利。

海航集团说，任何的费用拖欠都是一个关乎公平的问题，因为长期合同将该公司支付的价格锁定在远高于现价的水平。

大新华物流副总裁文江周一在上海举行的新闻发布会上说，沙钢船务申请查封海航资产的做法缺乏法律依据，因为目前仍不清楚海航是否应该为担保承担责任，以及应该承担多少责任。

文江说，沙钢船务在海外申请扣留一艘邮轮，令这一纠纷受到高度关注。他说，2011年，大新华物流以一美元的价格将旗下的航运公司卖给了在马绍尔群岛注册的一家公司。他拒绝透露买家的名字。

他说，大新华物流没有义务帮大新华航运还债，海航集团也没有义务，除非法院裁决它应该为担保承担责任。

在对大新华物流提出申诉之前，2011年曾发生一起重大纠纷，当时航运巨头中国远洋(China Cosco Holdings Ltd.)暂停支付部分船租，以迫使就全球航运业最繁荣时签订的高价协议进行重新谈判。中国远洋一直说，它最后解决了纠纷，而在纠纷之中至少有一艘船被暂扣。

此事恰逢邮轮产业努力在中国建立更多业务之际。中国是全球最有价值的出境游客来源国。邮轮运营商皇家加勒比邮轮公司(Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.)去年有一艘新船下水，以便吸引中国游客，增加了从中国到东南亚、韩国和日本的行程次数。据中国交通运输协会邮轮游艇分会(China Cruise & Yacht Industry Association)说，邮轮方面的大部分投资都来自国外。该机构说，海航是首家在国内注册的邮轮运营商。

不过，据皇家加勒比邮轮公司的估计数据显示，地方政府开始投资邮轮基础设施，近年来，仅沿海城市上海和天津的投资就超过了人民币123亿元。

海航旗下的旅游公司去年推出了“海娜”号，推出了从三亚至越南和从天津至韩国的旅游线路。这艘船也就是被韩国扣留的豪华邮轮。

皇家加勒比邮轮公司发言人说，该公司认为，最近的海航事件不会影响邮轮旅游。这位发言人说，大部分消费者都明白这是两家公司之间的问题，而不是安全问题。中国交通运输协会邮轮游艇分会的代表说，这一方兴未艾的产业不可避免地会出现磕磕绊绊，但不太可能阻碍其快速发展。