Europe

European Union (EU) member states have signed over 1300 investment treaties with third countries, in addition to some 200 between EU members. Non-EU European states are party to over 500 treaties. Most of these contain investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions, which enable foreign corporations to take ISDS claims against states if they deem their profits or potential investment to be affected by new laws or changes in policy.

The EU has ratified four agreements with an ISDS mechanism: the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), to which 53 European and Central Asian countries are party, the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) with Canada, and agreements with Vietnam and Singapore. Only the ECT has been fully in force. The ISDS provisions in the three others will be implemented after all member states have ratified them.

These three deals also include a revised ISDS mechanism created by the European Commission, known as the investment court system. Many critics say that this new system is largely window-dressing and does not address the core of the problem behind investor-state dispute measures.

In 2015, the European Commission asked the EU member states to terminate their intra-EU bilateral investment treaties (BITs), arguing they are incompatible with EU law, which was confirmed by the Court of Justice of the European Union in its “Achmea” decision.

As of April 2020, the number of intra-EU ISDS disputes amounted to 170, approximately 17% of all cases globally, 76 of which having been brought under the ECT.

Overall investors from European countries have initiated over 600 ISDS cases, half of which are against non-European states. European countries have been targeted in about 350 cases. Grouped together, investors from EU member states have launched the majority of total disputes (over 400).

Spain, the Czech Republic, Poland, Russia and Ukraine have been among the ten most frequent respondent states, while the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, France, Luxembourg, Italy and Switzerland have been among the ten most frequent home states of the investor.

The most well-known cases include:

Yukos (Isle of Man) vs. Russia: US$50 billion awarded in 2014 to majority shareholders of the oil and gas company (ECT invoked).

Eureko (Netherland) vs. Poland: case settled in 2005 for about €2 billion in favour of the investor, a large European insurance company (Netherland-Poland BIT invoked).

Ceskoslovenska Obchodni Banka (Czech Republic) vs. Slovak Republic: €553 million awarded in 2004 to the investor, one of the largest commercial banks in the Czech Republic (Czech Republic-Slovak Republic BIT invoked).

Photo: War on Want

(April 2020)

Globe Newswire | 17-Jul-2018
Russian businesswoman Marsha Lazareva has filed a notice of international arbitration with the State of Kuwait for breaching a bilateral investment treaty.
La Croix | 17-Jul-2018
Les deux partenaires, qui représentent près d’un tiers du PIB mondial, signent leur partenariat économique qui consacrera le libre-échange entre eux, et un accord de partenariat stratégique.
The Guardian | 12-Jul-2018
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s regime accused of illegally seizing company assets and breaching investment treaties involving Britain and other EU states.
CNCD 11.11.11 | 11-Jul-2018
La majorité wallonne a approuvé un accord d’investissements Belgique-Panama, qui va à l’encontre de ses propres engagements de faire bouger les lignes pour des traités plus justes.
Agence Europe | 6-Jul-2018
At their 25th bilateral summit, in Brussels on 11 July 2018, the EU and Japan will sign their strategic partnership agreement.
Le Petit Journal | 4-Jul-2018
Le Comité du patrimoine mondiale de l’UNESCO a décidé de reporter l’inclusion du site minier de Rosia Montana sur la liste du Patrimoine mondial de l’UNESCO.
Vaaju | 3-Jul-2018
Enagás has requested a proceeding before the ICSID against the Peruvian state after negotiating for six months without success to reach a friendly agreement in relation to the company’s investment in the Peruvian South Gas Management Project.
Le Temps | 2-Jul-2018
Sur la base du Traité de la charte de l’énergie, des investisseurs étrangers réclament des sommes astronomiques aux Etats qui décident de passer aux énergies renouvelables.
Business Review | 29-Jun-2018
The minister of culture says that the government has proposed the delay of the inclusion of Rosia Montana in the UNESCO World Heritage list until there is a final ruling in the case opened by Gabriel Resources against Romania.
TACD | 22-Jun-2018
TACD’s resolution recommends that rather than pursuing procedural changes through a MIC at the global level, the EU and US should refrain from including investor-state dispute settlement in any form from any agreement.