The Denver Federal Appeals Court has handed a setback for an Oklahoma firm that filed suit claiming a breach of contract against PetroChina Canada.
The U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a district court ruling that dismissed the suit and said it should be heard in Canadian courts.
The legal fight stemmed from PetroChina’s 2012 purchase of ten heat exchange units made at Kelvion’s plant in Catoosa, Oklahoma. The units were to be shipped to Alberta, Canada in 2014 but unanticipated delays and seasonal restrictions on shipping weights over Canadian roads in the winter resulted in an additional $671,324 in costs to Kelvion.
When PetroChina did not pay for the additional costs, Kelvin sued claiming breach of contract. But as the district court judge and now the Appeals Court ruled, that the contract included a mandatory forum-selection clause subjecting the parties to Canadian jurisdiction.