The ‘Spanish Saga’ in the Antin case and beyond: award recognition and asset recovery in EU investment arbitration

Article by Hector Sbert, partner at ECIJA.

Recently, on 24 May 2023, the High Court of London issued its long-awaited decision in the Antin case.[1] The High Court dismissed the appeal against the registration (ie, the recognition) of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) award that ordered Spain to pay €120m in favour of Infrastructure Services Luxembourg SÀRL and Energia Termosolar BV, for breach of its obligations under the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT). Spain opposed the recognition of the ICSID award invoking its sovereign immunity, which in turn was based on the Achmea and Komstroy doctrines developed by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).[2]

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