Over 30 Million Yuan in Sand and Gravel Not Delivered; Buyer and Seller End Up in Court

This article is reprinted from: Hunan Legal Daily

Over 30 million yuan worth of sand and gravel not delivered, parties go to court

Court mediates to resolve contract dispute

Hunan Legal Daily (Reporter Wang Shanshan) recently, the People’s Court of Anxiang County successfully mediated a sand and gravel sales contract dispute involving over 30 million yuan. The mediation not only resolved the conflict between the companies but also upheld fairness and justice, improved the business environment, and truly achieved a settlement, harmony, and resolution.

A material company, due to development needs, intended to purchase sand and gravel from a sand and gravel company. In November 2023, the material company paid a prepayment of 30 million yuan and a performance bond of 2 million yuan to the sand and gravel company, reaching an intention to cooperate on sand and gravel sales. On June 26, 2024, both parties officially signed a sales contract, agreeing that the sand and gravel company would supply sand and gravel as agreed. After signing the contract, the sand and gravel company only supplied a small portion of the sand and gravel. Despite multiple reminders from the material company, the company failed to fulfill the contract, causing serious economic losses to the material company. In December 2025, the material company filed a lawsuit, requesting to terminate the contract with the sand and gravel company, and demanding the return of 29.425 million yuan in payments, the 2 million yuan guarantee, and 3.138 million yuan in interest on funds occupied.

After accepting the case, the presiding judge carefully analyzed the facts, considering that this was a commercial dispute between enterprises. A simple ruling might not only worsen the conflict but also affect the future development of the companies and harm the stability of the local business environment. To maximize conflict resolution and protect enterprise development, the judge adhered to the principle of “mediation first, combining mediation and judgment,” actively communicating with both companies, and conducting in-depth visits to understand their operational status and demands.

Through multiple negotiations, patient legal explanation, and clarification, the judge facilitated an agreement: the involved sales contract would continue to be performed; the defendant sand and gravel company would supply no less than 60,000 tons of sand and gravel to the plaintiff material company each month starting from May 1, 2026, and complete the supply of all prepayment of 29.425 million yuan by April 30, 2027; the 2 million yuan performance bond would be refunded upon completion of the gravel supply or by the deadline; the defendant would pay the plaintiff 1.573 million yuan in interest for the funds occupied in two installments, and related issues such as breach responsibilities and security measures were clarified. The case was thus successfully resolved.