ICSID suspends penalty decision against Pakistan in Karkey case
Pakistan has gathered evidence of corruption in the procurement of RPP contract by Turkish Company
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – In yet another big achievement of Pakistan on diplomatic forum, the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) has suspended an award against Pakistan worth over $860 million in favor of Turkish power company Karkey Karadeniz Elektrik Uretim (Karkey).
The decision comes after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led (PTI) government initiated ‘revision proceedings’ in the ICSID to set aside the 2017 award in Karkey Karadeniz versus Pakistan, adding that Article 51 of the ICSID conviction allows parties to a dispute to bring to the tribunal any new facts that could decisively affect the award.
Authorities said that Pakistan has gathered fresh ‘evidence of corruption’ in the procurement of rental power project (RPP) contract by the Turkish company.
The officials said that the evidence of corruption would be presented in the international court and hoped that the decision would be in Pakistan’s favour.
It is pertinent here to mention that the firm had filed a claim before the ICSID in 2013 after the Supreme Court of Pakistan terminated all rental power contracts.
In 2008, Karkey had obtained a contract from the government of Pakistan for the supply of electricity under the RPPs that had been instituted to meet the shortfall in electricity.
Subsequently, the Supreme Court declared all RPPs contract void ab initio as there was a prima facie case that the contracts had been obtained by several private parties through corruption. The apex court had also instructed the National Accountability Bureau to investigate.
