Minerva Bunkering Marine Services (Pty) Ltd v Acting Chief Executive Officer of the South African Maritime Safety Authority and Others

Minerva Bunkering Marine Services (Pty) Ltd, a marine bunkering company operating in the ports of Port Elizabeth and Ngqura, held an approval originally granted to Aegean Marine Petroleum SA by SAMSA in 2014 to conduct ship-to-ship bunker transfers in Algoa Bay. The approval was transferred to Minerva in 2019. For several years Minerva conducted ship-to-ship operations involving three stages: transfer of fuel to a mothership, transfer from the mothership to bunker barges, and final bunkering of client vessels. In December 2022, SAMSA withdrew the approval with immediate effect, asserting that the approval only covered the final bunkering stage and that Minerva’s cargo transfer activities were unlawful. SAMSA also issued several admission of contravention notices. Minerva urgently approached the High Court for interim relief and for the review and setting aside of SAMSA’s decision under PAJA.

The decision of SAMSA dated 5 December 2022 withdrawing Minerva’s approval was declared unlawful, reviewed, and set aside. The approval was reinstated. All admission of contravention notices issued by SAMSA were declared unlawful and set aside. SAMSA was ordered to pay the costs of both parts A and B of the application, including the costs of two counsel.

This judgment clarifies the limits of SAMSA’s powers under the Marine Pollution (Control and Civil Liability) Act, confirming that SAMSA has no unilateral authority to revoke approvals absent express statutory power or lawful conditions. It reinforces the principle of legality, the functus officio doctrine in administrative law, and the requirement that organs of state act consistently and within their empowering provisions. The case is significant for maritime regulation, administrative certainty, and the relationship between SAMSA and port authorities.