Previous Solar Wars articles reported on the numerous claims for
breach of the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) by EU investors against
EU states such as Spain following the curtailment of those
states' renewable incentive schemes. After a couple of initial
setbacks, more and more investors have obtained awards in their
favour, and the battleground has moved onto whether those awards
are enforceable. In the latest twists in this tale, it appears that
the EU itself might find itself being pursued by investors.
The EU, the ECT and Achmea: a reminder
The Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) in Slovak Republic v
Achmea (Case C-284/16) held that intra-EU investor-state
arbitrations under bilateral investment treaties between EU states
violated EU law. ECT arbitral tribunals have consistently rejected
the application of Achmea to ECT claims, pointing out
amongst other things that the ECT is a multilateral treaty to which
the EU itself is a party. The latest award rejecting
