GTLK Malta Four（马耳他公司，下称“船东”）系俄罗斯国有租赁公司GTLK的间接子公司，将7艘船舶以BARECON 2001格式光船租约，融资出租给塞浦路斯公司Pola Logistics，租期十年，按季付租，租满后所有权依约转移，实质为售后回租式融资租赁。Pola Maritime等四家关联公司就租约义务提供共同担保，并承诺“视同主债务人”付款；即使主债务不可执行、无效或非法，担保人仍须独立赔偿，且概括放弃足以减免其责任的一切抗辩。
详细信息请参阅附件。
Sanctions Do Not Extinguish Payment Obligations under Charterparties :
GTLK Malta Four v Pola Maritime
—A Case Note on [2026] EWHC 2514 (Comm), with Observations on the UK and Japanese Vessel Designations of October 2026
GTLK Malta Four, a Maltese company (the “Owners”), is an indirect subsidiary of GTLK, a Russian state-owned leasing company. It let seven vessels to Pola Logistics, a Cypriot company, under bareboat charterparties on amended BARECON 2001 forms by way of financing. The charterparties had ten-year terms, provided for quarterly hire payments and stipulated that title would transfer upon expiry. In substance, they constituted sale-and-leaseback financing arrangements. Pola Maritime and three other affiliates provided joint and several guarantees of the charterparty obligations and undertook to make payment “as if they were the principal obligors”. Even if the underlying obligations became unenforceable, invalid or illegal, the guarantors remained independently liable to indemnify the Owners and generally waived all defences that might reduce or discharge their liability.
Please see attached file for details.
