The Lithuanian government allocated about 3.9 million euros ($4.5 million) to the Ministry of Energy to pay for lawyers representing the country in international arbitration bodies over disputes with the French utility company, Veolia, in Washington and Russia's Gazprom in Sweden, media reported on Thursday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st October, 2019) The Lithuanian government allocated about 3.9 million Euros ($4.5 million) to the Ministry of Energy to pay for lawyers representing the country in international arbitration bodies over disputes with the French utility company, Veolia, in Washington and Russia's Gazprom in Sweden, media reported on Thursday.According to the Obzor newspaper, given the fact that Lithuania continues litigation with Veolia at the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes in Washington and seeks to reverse the ruling by the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce over the dispute with Gazprom, the Lithuanian government decided to provide the Energy Ministry with approximately $4.5 million to pay for lawyers.
The ministry announced that additional funds were necessary to pay off the 2018 debts and this year's legal bills.
The media also reported that the government had already allocated approximately $3.5 million for these purposes in 2018 and $2.5 million in 2017, while the lawyers might need about $8.4 million by the end of 2020.
In 2016, Veolia, the owner of heating companies in Lithuania, sued the country, demanding over $130 million in compensation for losses that the company allegedly sustained due to unfair treatment by the Lithuanian government. Meanwhile, the Lithuanian officials accused Veolia of illegally manipulating heat prices and demanded over $220 million in damages.
In July 2016, the Swedish Court of Appeal rejected Lithuania 's claim to reverse the ruling by the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce over the dispute between the country and Gazprom. In particular, the arbitration tribunal ruled that the company had a conflict of interest in acting as both Lithuanian Gas' shareholder and a supplier of gas to Lithuania, but it did not award the compensation of around $1.6 billion sought by the Baltic country for gas supplied by Gazprom in 2004-2012. As a result, Lithuania turned to the Supreme Court of Sweden, appealing against the decision of Sweden's Court of Appeals.
