04 August 2015
MUSCAT: Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company (Orpic), the Sultanate's refining and petrochemicals flagship, has issued a statement acknowledging recent media reports pertaining to a petition submitted by Korean engineering giant Samsung Engineering to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) seeking redressal through arbitration on a matter regarding Orpic's Sohar Refinery Improvement Project.
The statement said: "In regards to this matter, Orpic has acted in accordance with applicable laws and confirms that it has proceeded with legal action against Samsung Engineering for failure to meet their obligations under the tender submitted for the above-mentioned project -- resulting in damages being sustained by Orpic. As the matter is subject to litigious processes, no further comment can be made until the outcome of the matter is finalised."
Seoul-based Samsung Engineering had recently revealed that it had filed an international arbitration complaint against the wholly Omani government-owned company over the latter's handling of its bid for the refinery improvement project.
According to reports in the Korean media, Samsung Engineering was a frontrunner for the contract to execute the Sohar Refinery Improvement Project.
"We were chosen as a preferred bidder for the project, but Orpic withdrew the project during the negotiations," a company official was quoted as saying. Orpic also withheld the bidder's deposit for the contract, he stated.
US law firm of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton will represent Samsung in the international court, which is based in Washington, DC. Representing the Sultanate is the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Oil and Gas, according to ICSID.
ICSID is an independent, depoliticised and effective dispute-settlement institution. Its availability to investors and states helps to promote international investment by providing confidence in the dispute resolution process, according to the organisation.
ICSID was established in 1966 by the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States. The convention is a multilateral treaty formulated by the executive directors of the World Bank to further the bank's objective of promoting international investment.
MUSCAT: Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company (Orpic), the Sultanate's refining and petrochemicals flagship, has issued a statement acknowledging recent media reports pertaining to a petition submitted by Korean engineering giant Samsung Engineering to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) seeking redressal through arbitration on a matter regarding Orpic's Sohar Refinery Improvement Project.
The statement said: "In regards to this matter, Orpic has acted in accordance with applicable laws and confirms that it has proceeded with legal action against Samsung Engineering for failure to meet their obligations under the tender submitted for the above-mentioned project -- resulting in damages being sustained by Orpic. As the matter is subject to litigious processes, no further comment can be made until the outcome of the matter is finalised."
Seoul-based Samsung Engineering had recently revealed that it had filed an international arbitration complaint against the wholly Omani government-owned company over the latter's handling of its bid for the refinery improvement project.
According to reports in the Korean media, Samsung Engineering was a frontrunner for the contract to execute the Sohar Refinery Improvement Project.
"We were chosen as a preferred bidder for the project, but Orpic withdrew the project during the negotiations," a company official was quoted as saying. Orpic also withheld the bidder's deposit for the contract, he stated.
US law firm of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton will represent Samsung in the international court, which is based in Washington, DC. Representing the Sultanate is the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Oil and Gas, according to ICSID.
ICSID is an independent, depoliticised and effective dispute-settlement institution. Its availability to investors and states helps to promote international investment by providing confidence in the dispute resolution process, according to the organisation.
ICSID was established in 1966 by the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States. The convention is a multilateral treaty formulated by the executive directors of the World Bank to further the bank's objective of promoting international investment.
© Oman Daily Observer 2015
