Contracts and risk
Our team understands the technical and commercial complexities of the industry and aims to provide pragmatic legal support that aligns with the strategic objectives of a given operation.
Risk allocation is the heart of it. Indemnities, knock-for-knock arrangements, force majeure and the consequences of delay are where value is won or lost in this sector, and they are settled at the drafting stage.
Malta as a base
Malta’s position in the central Mediterranean makes it a practical base for offshore support and bunkering operations, which brings its own contractual and regulatory questions. We advise on those alongside the underlying commercial agreements.
Where value is won and lost
- Indemnity and knock-for-knock provisions
- Force majeure, and what it does and does not excuse
- Delay, standby rates and liquidated damages
- Price review mechanisms in long-term sales contracts
- Warranties and liability caps on asset transfers
- Governing law, jurisdiction and the arbitration clause
Transactions and assets
We advise on the acquisition and disposal of assets in the sector, where the commercial risk usually sits in the warranties, the liability caps and the treatment of pre-existing environmental and decommissioning obligations. These are negotiated points, and the outcome depends on how early they are addressed.
Because this work is almost always cross-border, we coordinate with counsel in other jurisdictions through the Global Law Experts network where a transaction requires it.
Bunkering and offshore support
A significant part of the sector’s activity around Malta concerns bunkering, offshore support services and the movement of product rather than exploration. The contracts governing that activity raise their own questions: quality and quantity disputes, delivery risk, demurrage, and liability where a supply operation causes loss or pollution.
We advise on these agreements and on the disputes that arise under them, and we work with counsel in other jurisdictions where the contract, the vessel and the parties are governed by different systems of law, which in this sector is the normal position rather than the exception.
Common questions
- Do you draft drilling agreements?
- Yes, we draft and review them, with particular attention to how risk and liability are allocated between the parties.
- Can you advise on long-term supply contracts?
- Yes, including on pricing mechanisms, review clauses and what happens when market conditions move against one party.
- Do you act for international operators?
- Yes. Much of this work is cross-border, and through Global Law Experts we can bring in counsel in other jurisdictions where required.