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A contract dispute pitting a Mombasa maize miller against the country’s dominant bulk grain handler has been postponed again, extending a case that has lingered in court for nearly six years and keeping fresh attention on an industry long tied to businessman Mohammed Jaffer.
Mombasa Maize Millers is suing Grain Bulk Handlers Limited, also known as Bulkstream Ltd, over an alleged breach of contract involving grain supplies valued at more than $703,000, about Ksh90 million. The grain handling company is associated with Jaffer, a well known figure in Mombasa’s port linked businesses.
The matter had been scheduled for hearing Tuesday before the High Court in Mombasa. It did not proceed after both sides told the court they were not ready to call witnesses.
Justice Florence Macharia granted an application by Bulkstream to postpone the hearing. The company said its only listed witness had suffered a bereavement and could not testify. A lawyer for the defense asked the court for time, citing the loss in the witness’s family.
Mombasa Maize Millers also sought an adjournment, telling the court that one of its lawyers handling the dispute was unwell. The miller’s counsel said the parties had agreed the case should be removed from the day’s cause list.
Macharia set the next hearing for May 7, when both sides are expected to present witnesses and begin the long awaited testimony in the commercial fight.
The case has attracted interest beyond the two companies because of Bulkstream’s position at the Port of Mombasa. Bulkstream operates Kenya’s only dedicated bulk grain handling facility at the port, a chokepoint through which most imported grain passes before being distributed to millers across the country. The facility’s role has made the company a key gatekeeper in the supply chain for wheat, maize and other staples.
Bulkstream has dominated port based grain storage and handling since 2000, according to court and industry accounts, a status that has fueled complaints from traders and millers about costs, delays and the risks of relying on a single operator. Pressure has grown in recent years for licensing of another facility to increase competition, and new players, including Portside Freight Terminals, have begun moving into the sector.
The lawsuit by Mombasa Maize Millers is not the first time the company has faced legal trouble linked to its operations. In an earlier case cited in court reporting, Atta Kenya Limited sued the grain handler over the alleged illegal auction of 13,196 metric tonnes of wheat, seeking Ksh730 million in compensation. Court documents in that dispute said the wheat was sold to Grain Industries Limited for Ksh217 million, with the importer alleging conflict of interest and fraud.
With Tuesday’s adjournment, the latest case will now wait again, leaving unresolved the miller’s claim that a supply agreement was breached and that losses ran into tens of millions of shillings. The court has not ruled on the merits of the suit, and both sides will have another chance in May to put witnesses on the stand and press their competing accounts of what happened.
