Alkagesta files defamation proceedings against the Maltese Herald in Malta court
The Malta-based commodities trader says a year of false and unevidenced reporting has caused commercial harm, and has filed a complaint in Malta's Court of Magistrates.
Alkagesta has initiated defamation proceedings against Maltese newspaper the Maltese Herald, the Sliema-based commodities trading house said on 18 September, citing what it describes as a series of false and libellous articles published about the company over the past year. The complaint has been filed in Malta's Court of Magistrates.
In a statement, the company said the publication had made and repeated "entirely false, damaging and unevidenced statements" about its business, and had continued to do so after several attempts to engage with the paper and set out the facts. Alkagesta, whose commodity trading operations cover fuel oil, gasoil, gasoline and fertilizer cargoes across the Mediterranean, Black Sea and Caspian, said the reporting served no legitimate purpose other than to cause unjustified commercial harm.
The trader added that the step was not taken lightly, and that it remains open to resolving the matter amicably should the Maltese Herald issue an apology and retract the articles and references in question. It also pointed to what it called the mirroring of the allegations by pay-to-play websites as a factor in its decision to litigate.
Reputational exposure of this kind sits close to the commercial core of physical trading, where counterparties, banks and charterers assess a company's risk and compliance framework before extending credit lines or fixing tonnage. For mid-sized traders operating on bank-financed working capital, unresolved public claims can complicate know-your-customer reviews even where no regulatory finding exists.
Malta remains a significant base for bunker supply, ship management and commodity finance in the central Mediterranean, and Alkagesta's shipping and logistics activity is coordinated from the island alongside its storage and blending arrangements. The company said it will make no further comment on the proceedings until the legal process has run its course.
Anchor Point Shipping has not independently verified the claims made by either party. The statement summarised above is Alkagesta's own account, published on its corporate newsroom; the matter is now before the Maltese courts and no findings have been made.
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