Supreme Court frames four issues on Rs. 1292 crore EPC contract dispute

This case concerns a dispute between a corporate debtor (appellant) and an operational creditor (respondent) regarding unpaid dues under an Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contract for a power station. The core issue is whether the respondent's claim for uncrystallized damages and unpaid milestones constitutes an 'operational debt' under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, and whether the insolvency application was time-barred or barred by a pre-existing dispute.

Appellant: Srinivasa Reddy Velagala (Corporate Debtor); Respondent: Sravanti Infratech Pvt. Ltd. (Operational Creditor); Bench: Justice J. B. Pardiwalla.

• The Court framed four specific issues to be determined: (1) whether the EPC contract was frustrated by the efflux of time; (2) whether the monies claimed constitute 'operational debt' under Section 5(21) of the IBC; (3) whether a prior dispute existed; and (4) whether the Section 9 application was time-barred.
• The judgment notes that the NCLT and NCLAT had previously admitted the Section 9 application and initiated insolvency proceedings against the appellant.
• The Court is tasked with analyzing the subsistence of the EPC contract, the nature of the debt, the existence of pre-existing disputes, and limitation periods.

Written from the document by AI, and checked against it. The original below is authoritative.

The original document