ICSID Tribunal Upholds High Threshold For Granting Provisional Measures And Ordering Security For Costs

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) tribunal recently reaffirmed the high threshold for granting provisional measures in investor-state disputes, including in the context of making an order of security for costs against an investor, in the EuroGas Inc. and Belmont Resources Inc. v. Slovak Republic arbitration. The decision confirms that inability to meet a potential costs award on its own will not constitute a sufficient basis to deny the hearing of claims brought by foreign investors seeking resolution of their disputes against host States pursuant to the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States (ICSID Convention).