In a Stockholm-seated ICC arbitration, Three Crowns secured an outcome reported in the press as a “landmark” in the energy sector.
Three Crowns was lead counsel for DEPA, the principal player in the Greek gas market, in a case against BOTAŞ, Turkey’s main gas importer and wholesaler. The BOTAŞ-DEPA long-term contract for gas to be imported into Greece followed an international treaty between Greece and Turkey to create a new pipeline corridor for gas supplies into Europe.
Press reports indicate the Tribunal revised the contractual price formula to align it with Western European prices, retroactively from 2011. This is a major step for Southern Europe, following the decoupling of gas and oil prices in Western Europe.
Commenting on the award, Three Crowns partner Georgios Petrochilos noted, “This is a precedential decision in legal and economic terms, with significance for other long-term supplies in Europe.”
The parties’ dispute had a complex history, including rulings from a long-running prior arbitration which had been challenged – unsuccessfully – in Sweden.
“A remarkably diligent and thoughtful award, untangling the history and working out its implications for the parties’ ongoing contractual relationship, with loyal contributions by counsel for both sides,” Petrochilos added.
The Three Crowns team comprised partners Petrochilos and Todd Wetmore, counsel Gaurav Sharma (now at the English Bar), and associates Leon Firios (now at the Bar of Western Australia) and Patrick Fox – with contributions on various matters by colleagues from Clyde & Co, Foley Hoag, Gantey, and Vinge.