Energy Charter Treaty

The Energy Charter Treaty, adopted on 17 December 1994, provides a multilateral framework for energy cooperation between Contracting Parties. It includes substantive protections for foreign investment. Disputes between an investor and a Contracting Party under the Energy Charter Treaty may be submitted to arbitration under a range of procedural regimes including the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules. The PCA frequently provides administrative support in disputes between investors and States arising under the Energy Charter Treaty, conducted under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules. For publicly available information on PCA-administered cases under the Energy Charter Treaty, please visit the PCA Cases section.

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Energy Charter Treaty Forum

The PCA is a co-sponsoring institution of the annual international Energy Charter Treaty Forum, together with the Energy Charter Secretariat, the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes, and the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce.

The 2019 Energy Charter Treaty Forum will be held in Singapore on 20 November 2019.

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As a further step in promoting the goals embodied in the Energy Charter Treaty, the International Energy Charter—a political declaration aimed at strengthening energy cooperation between States—was adopted at a Ministerial Conference held in The Hague on 20 and 21 May 2015. While the International Energy Charter does not contain any legally binding obligations, it sets forth common principles for international cooperation in the field of energy. Following the adoption of the International Energy Charter, on 22 May 2015, the PCA and the Energy Charter Secretariat hosted The Hague Energy Charter Legal Forum on the “Resolution of International Energy Disputes: Peace, Stability and Security”.

The event provided a setting for representatives from governments and energy companies to discuss energy dispute resolution. The forum featured two panels: the first, moderated by Mr. Michael Polkinghorne, partner at White & Case LLP (Paris), comprised the following governmental representatives:

• Mr. Bayaornibè Dabire, ECOWAS Director of Energy;
• Ms. Alisa Newman Hood, Senior Advisor, Energy Resources Bureau, US Department of State; and,
• Ms. Marie Talašová, Head of International Arbitration Department, Ministry of Finance, Czech Republic.

The second panel, moderated by Dr. Sabine Konrad, partner at McDermott Will & Emery LLP (Frankfurt), included the following energy company representatives:

• Mr. Cornelis van der Bom, Associate General Counsel (Upstream Activities), Shell;
• Mr. Michael McIlwrath, Global Chief Litigation Counsel, GE Oil & Gas;
• Dr. Zangar Nogaibay, Executive Director, Association “Kazenergy”;
• Dr. Sun Xiansheng, President, China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), Economics & Technology Research Institute; and,
• Ms. Masako Takahata, General Counsel, Eurus Energy Holdings Corporation.