Dana Gas, Crescent Petroleum, and Pearl Petroleum Company filed a case against the KRG at the London Court of International Arbitration in October 2013 with respect to their contract with the Kurdish government.
On Monday, the court ruled in favour of the three claimants in its third ruling on the case, according to a statement from Dana Gas that the KRG subsequently challenged.
The court found that the KRG had delayed the claimants’ development in areas where they had exclusive rights by preventing the claimants from “carrying out appraisals and such other activities” necessary to put forward a proposal, the statement from Dana Gas reads.
The court will decide at a later date the amount the KRG is to pay in damages.
Dana Gas also stated that the court “dismissed in totality all of the KRG’s counterclaims against the Claimants, finding that there was no unreasonable delay in their execution of the project.”
The KRG’s Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) issued a statement responding to Dana Gas’ claims regarding the court’s ruling, describing Dana Gas’ statement as “misleading.”
“The tribunal did not find that the Claimants managed and performed the project efficiently or well or there was no unreasonably delay in the Claimants’ execution of the project,” the MNR stated, adding that the court “merely found that the Claimants’ management of the project progress did not amount to a breach of contract.”
The court also ordered the KRG to pay the claimants over $121 million as payment for condensate and liquefied petroleum gas extracted between June 30, 2015 and March 31, 2016, with interest, Dana Gas stated.
The KRG, in its statement, noted that Dana Gas failed to mention court rulings against the claimants including rejecting the claimants’ claim for over $1.7 billion for “excess gas,” $3.3 billion in “earn out payments,” and $24 million in damages Dana Gas sought to recover sales of assets in undertook while facing financial difficulties.
This is the third judgement the court has made in this case, according to Dana Gas. In July 2015, the court confirmed the claimants’ “long-term contractual rights,” and in November 2015 awarded the claimants $1.96 billion for outstanding unpaid invoices.
Dana Gas and its partners developed Khor Mor gas field and are studying the potential of further exploration in Khor Mor and development of the Chemchemal gas field, according to Dana Gas’ website.
The court case continues and the KRG has vowed to “vigorously” defend its position.
