SSA Marine, Inc. v. United States

77 Fed. Cl. 662, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 244, 2007 WL 2219347
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedJuly 31, 2007
DocketNo. 05-490C
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 77 Fed. Cl. 662 (SSA Marine, Inc. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
SSA Marine, Inc. v. United States, 77 Fed. Cl. 662, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 244, 2007 WL 2219347 (uscfc 2007).

Opinion

OPINION

DAMICH, Chief Judge.

This government contracts case is before the Court on Defendant’s motion for partial summary judgment. At issue is a contract for Plaintiff to operate and manage the port of Umm Qasr following the 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United States and its coalition partners. The Defendant argues that the contract is entirely a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract and, therefore, the fee or profit payable to the contractor by statute cannot exceed ten percent of the estimated cost of perform-anee. Plaintiff counters that the contract was only partially a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract. According to Plaintiff, the contract’s “Financing Port Operations” clause entitles it to a profit that may exceed ten percent of the cost of its performance. For the reasons discussed herein, the Defendant’s motion is GRANTED.

BACKGROUND1

The contract in question (the “Contract”) was awarded to SSA Marine, Inc. (“SSA”) on March 24, 2003, by the U.S. Agency for International Development (“USAID” or “Government”) four days after the United States and its coalition partners began their invasion of Iraq. The Contract provided that SSA was “to quickly, effectively and safely complete those tasks essential to assess, improve, maintain, and—if necessary—operate Umm Qasr port in support of humanitarian and reconstruction assistance to the people of Iraq.” App. to Def.’s Mot. for Partial Summ. J. (“Def.’s App.”) at 2. The Contract was divided into three contract line items (“CLINs”): the first, CLIN 001, regarded Plaintiffs preparation of a port management assessment; the second, CLIN 002, called for the implementation of port management improvements; and the third, CLIN 003, provided that Plaintiff would assume direct operation and management of the port if the Government determined it would be necessary. Compl. 1Í7. On May 21, 2003, the Government indeed called upon the Plaintiff to commence operation and management of the port under CLIN 003. Id. If 11. On or about June 17, 2003, the Government “ordered SSA to open the port to commercial cargo in addition to the humanitarian aid cargo anticipated by the Contract.” Id. U13.

The parties agree that CLINs 001 and 002 were negotiated on a cost-plus-fixed-fee basis. Id. 118; Answer H 8. The dispute centers on CLIN 003, regarding operation and management of the port. The Defendant argues that CLIN 003 in its entirety was also negotiated on a cost-plus-fixed-fee basis, while Plaintiff contends that the Contract provided [664]*664two payment mechanisms for CLIN 003, one a cost-plus-fixed fee provision, the other a provision providing for a negotiated payment derived from port revenues (the Financing Port Operations provision). Because the Defendant will pay SSA no more than on the cost-plus-fixed fee basis, Plaintiff asserts that it was inadequately compensated for its operation and management of the port from May 2003 to June 2004. See Compl. 111111, 19.

CLIN 003 provides:

From time to time, and especially in the instance of local or regional conflict, it may be in the interest of the U.S. Government that part or all of the Umm Qasr port be managed directly by the Contractor. The [Contractor shall be prepared to accept this task within four weeks of contract inception. As required USAID will facilitate transfer of authority over the port from national or local agencies to the Contractor. It is expected that direct operations of the port will occur only on an emergency basis and that direct operations will continue for an unspecified period of time until a transition of authority returns control to national or local agencies.

Def.’s App. at 9-11. This provision is not in dispute. The Financing Port Operations (“FPO”) clause of the Contract that, for Plaintiff, embodies the second payment clause of CLIN 003 provides:

In the event that USAID directs the contractor to manage and operate the port, start up funds and working capital to begin implementation of the operation plan shall be provided by USAID. Start up capital shall be provided to cover initial facility and equipment replacement and repair as proposed by the contractor and approved by USAID from the port assessment, improvement plan and operational plan. Start up working capital shall be provided to cover initial operation of the port. After port operations begin, working capital for labor, facilities and equipment operation and maintenance, port overhead and contractor profits shall be obtained from fees and charges to carriers and cargo oumers. USAID shall approve the fee and charge schedule and the level of contractor profit from operations. The contractor shall present USAID with monthly financial statements outlining the costs, revenues and profits from operations. The contractor shall maintain separate bank account(s) and records regarding port costs and revenues under this contract. To the extent that revenues exceed costs and negotiated maximum profit margin or level, USAID shall determine the use of any remaining funds in the port operation accounts.

Def.’s App. at 11 (emphases added).

In the summer of 2003, after a tariff was established and the rates to be charged were determined, Plaintiff began collecting fees and charges from carriers and cargo owners in the Port of Umm Qasr pursuant to the FPO clause. During Plaintiffs operation of the port, it collected $18,742,948.73 in revenues, $12,807,084.83 of which was distributed to the Development Fund for Iraq at the direction of the Government.2 Def.’s Resp. to Pl.’s Proposed Findings of Uncontroverted Fact (“Def.’s Resp. to Pl.’s FF”) 1138. From August to December 2003, Plaintiff made three requests to set a profit level based on its reading of the FPO clause, all of which were denied. Pl.’s Opp. at 10-11.

Plaintiff was paid $13,302,649.29 under the Contract, which consisted of $12,860,534.81 in allowable costs, $438,048.00 in fixed fee, and $4,066.48 in interest on a late payment. Def.’s Proposed Findings of Uncontroverted Fact (“Def.’s FF”) H 17. On July 26, 2004, Plaintiff filed a certified claim with the contracting officer (“CO”) in the amount of $4,400,004.40 plus interest for the Government’s failure to approve a level of profit based on port revenues. Pl.’s Opp. at 11; Joint Preliminary Status Report (“JPSR”) Ex. 1. On November 29, 2004, the CO denied Plaintiffs certified claim. Pl.’s Opp. at 11. On April 22, 2005, Plaintiff filed its complaint in the Court of Federal Claims seeking additional compensation. Its complaint alleges that Defendant breached the Contract by “failing to approve and allow payment of a reasonable profit for work done under CLIN 003 as required” by the FPO clause (Count [665]*665I). Compl. U 22. Moreover, Plaintiff alleges that the Defendant breached the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing by failing to “properly fund the contract” and failing to “approve a reasonable profit as required by the terms of the solicitation and as promised during negotiations” (Count II). Id. H25.

The Defendant filed its motion for partial summary judgment on October 13, 2006, solely on the issue of “whether the contract ... was a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract that was subject to a ten percent limit with regard to the fee or profit paid the contractor.” Def.’s Mot. for Partial Summ. J. at 1. In other words, the motion disputes the Plaintiff’s contention that the FPO provision created a second payment mechanism for port operations. See, e.g., Def.’s Reply at 6-11.

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77 Fed. Cl. 662, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 244, 2007 WL 2219347, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ssa-marine-inc-v-united-states-uscfc-2007.