Japanese-Vehicle Sales Spat Goes to Cambodian Court

Companies from Malaysia and Cambodia are suing each other in a multimillion-dollar, 7-year battle over who has the right to sell Japanese vehicles in Cambodia.

Tan Chong Motor says its subsidiary ETCM signed a distribution agreement with Nissan in 2010 for the exclusive right to distribute completely-built-up Nissan vehicles in Cambodia.

In a statement to the Malaysian Stock Exchange, Tan Chong says it took over the Nissan distributorship from Denmark-based Kjaer Group, which previously had appointed Narita Motorcare its non-exclusive dealer for Nissan vehicles in Cambodia.

Tan Chong says ETCM began negotiations with Narita with a view to appointing it as a non-exclusive dealer in Phnom Penh.

Narita contends that in practice, Kjaer Group always had allowed it to act as sole distributor of Nissan vehicles for all of Cambodia with a right to import Nissan vehicles.

The negotiations lasted years until Narita filed suit in 2015 seeking protection of its claimed sole-distributorship status. A Court of Appeal ruled in favor of ETCM and Tan Chong Motor.

The Tan Chong statement says the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce wrote a letter stating it recognized the exclusive right of ETCM to distribute Nissan vehicles in Cambodia.

But Narita filed a new suit last month, asking a court to order ETCM  and Tan Chong to pay damages and compensation of $6.55 million to Narita and $200,000 each to its two principals, Long Narith and Pich Sokhom.

Now Tan Chong says it and ETCM have countersued Narita and the two principals.

The suit asks the court to dismiss all claims by Narita and its two principals and to order Narita, Long Narith and Pich Sokhom to pay ETCM and TCMC totaling about $33 million for actual losses and emotional damages.