Hess Corporation v. Eni Petroleum U.S., LLC, et al.

Eni Petroleum (Eni) (defendant) agreed to sell natural gas to Hess Corporation (Hess) (plaintiff), without the contract specifying any particular gas source or transporter. When a leak was discovered in the pipeline Eni happened to use, its operator halted all transportation through it, and Eni declared force majeure under a clause excusing performance for causes beyond the parties' control, including interruptions in transportation; Hess rejected the declaration, noting the delivery point was fed by multiple sources unaffected by the leak and that the contract never named this specific pipeline or operator. Hess was forced to buy substitute gas at a steep markup and sued for breach; the trial judge found for Hess, ruling the absence of any named transporter meant the leak wasn't a valid force majeure event, and Eni appealed.