ISLAMABAD: International Arbitration court ruled in favour of Pakistanagainst Chinese Firm.
Pakistan has clinched a favourable ruling in international court regardingthe country’s one billion rupees of liquidated damage claim against aChinese energy conglomerate for delaying renewable power projects,officials said on Saturday.
The London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) issued its finalawards related to a dispute between Central Power Purchasing Agency(CPPA-G) and Zonergy Company Limited earlier this week.
In the determination of the disputes between the parties, the solearbitrator decided the required commercial operations date, “as agreedbetween the parties under the respective energy purchase agreements,represented a valid and binding obligation”.
“Consequently, CPPA-G’s imposition of liquidated damages for the powerprojects’ delay in achieving COD (commercial operations date) by RCOD(required commercial operations date) was justified,” the official said.
The CPPA-G and three subsidiaries of Zonergy approached the London Court ofInternational Arbitration earlier this year to agitate their disputes underthree identical energy purchase agreements signed between CPPA-G and thesubsidiaries of Zonergy in June 2015 to set up 300 megawatts of solar powerproject. Each solar independent power producer has the capacity to generate100 megawatts.
Read Top Stories
The final hearing for the LCIA arbitration numbers (183,881, 183,884 and183,885) initiated by the independent power producers took place from April29, 2019, to May 3, 2019, in Islamabad. The sole arbitrator appointed bythe LCIA issued his final awards in the LCIA arbitration on November 19,2019.
The federal cabinet had approved a draft of renewable energy policy,envisaging 20 per cent clean energy by 2025 and 30 per cent by 2030, upfrom around four per cent currently.
The government would soon convene a meeting of the Council of CommonInterests to finalise the renewable energy policy.
