Netherlands
The Dutch company Hanocal sought international arbitration to demand more than 240 billion won ($205 million) in compensation for what it claimed as extra taxes it had paid to the South Korean government.
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The Dutch parliament has passed a motion rejecting provisional application of the EU-Canada trade deal, known as the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA).
The heavily criticized legal mechanism, known as ISDS, is an important tool for European companies to pressurize developing countries. This year Uganda joins the rank of developing nations asking themselves: “Why have we ever signed this?”
American mining corporation Newmont escaped the domestic processing requirement from Indonesia’s 2009 Mining Law. It achieved this by using a clause in a Dutch investment treaty.
Eureko v. Poland. Case settled (investor obtained $1.6 billion).
Norway says TTIP could cause "issues" for UK if it pulls out of EU
The Dutch company will file an ISDS application against the Korean government, should the authorities refuse to pay 183.5 billion won ($169.9 million) in tax refund.
This paper shows how (the threat of) lawsuits taken to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes and other fora, using Dutch BITs, have effectively blocked policymaking in the public interest for development in host countries.
The case of Newmont Mining vs Indonesia is a powerful example of how investment agreements, particularly Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs), are used by companies to get exemptions from government regulations and legislation, undermining democracy and development.
South Africa’s unilateral cancellation of its bilateral investment treaty with the Netherlands, a major trade and investment partner, does not appear to have dampened the Dutch appetite for investment in the country.
Vodafone Group Plc has abandoned the conciliation process and started international investment arbitration against the Indian government over its long-running tax dispute.
Indonesia terminates its BIT with the Netherlands from 1 July 2015 and may terminate all of its BITs
While certain countries have terminated individual BITs, termination of all BITs would be unprecedented.
Last week, the Indonesian government announced that it will terminate its Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) with the Netherlands, joining the growing number of countries concerned about the excessive corporate rights enshrined in investment agreements.
Indonesian VP Boediono met with Dutch PM Mark Rutte on Sunday and explained that Indonesia’s decision not to extend its bilateral investment treaty with the Netherlands was common to all countries with bilateral investment agreements with Indonesia that would soon end.
According to the Netherlands Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia has informed the Netherlands that it has decided to terminate the Bilateral Investment Treaty between the two nations from 1 July 2015. The Embassy also states that “the Indonesian Government has mentioned it intends to terminate all of its 67 bilateral investment treaties“.
In a 2-1 decision, the World Bank’s arbitration panel has rejected Venezuela’s request for "reconsideration" of its September 2013 finding that it had jurisdiction and that Venezuela was liable for the expropriation of ConocoPhillips’ investments in the Latin American nation.
1st of November 2013 is an important date if one wants to get rid of this outdated treaty which poses growing risk to policy making in the public interest
As the British telecommunications company Vodafone Group and India’s finance ministry edge ever closer to a full-blown confrontation over taxes related to Vodafone’s $11.1 billion acquisition in India, a key issue may be the India-Netherlands Bilateral Investment Treaty, signed between the two governments in 1995.
The Indian government is likely to oppose any move by Vodafone Plc to invoke the India-Netherlands Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (BIPA) if it is forced to cough up Rs 12,000 crore in taxes on the grounds that the investment was routed through several step down firms based in different countries and that the treaty does not cover tax disputes.
Fearing the Indian government will use new tax laws to trap it back around Rs 12,000 crore in taxes, the world’s largest mobile operator, Vodafone, may invoke a bilateral investment treaty between India and the Netherlands to avoid doing so.
