Die Aufhebung der Yukos-Schiedssprüche des Permanent Court of Arbitration vor dem Bezirksgericht in Den Haag – nur der Anfang einer langen Vollstreckungsodysee?

In 2015, the shareholders of the former OAO YUKOS Oil Company have achieved a noteworthy success before the Permanent Court of Arbitration. The Russian Federation was ordered to pay over 50 Billion US-Dollar for the indirect expropriation of the company almost ten years after the start of the arbitration. Not only is the largest quantum awarded in the history of arbitration, but also the background of the procedure quite remarkable, which reveals the strong relations between the state-owned energy-related industry and the Russian leadership. The Russian tax demands against YUKOS and the auction of the main oil-producing subsidiary company Yuganskneftegaz may be easily identified as typical case of an indirect expropriation. Nevertheless, the admissibility of the arbitral procedure was quite controversial and will strongly determine the future enforcement procedures. The basis of the three arbitral awards was the provisional applicability of the energy charter treaty, which was signed by the Russian Federation, but has never been ratified. Not surprisingly, the district court of The Haag stated in its annulment decision of April 2016, that this basis was not sufficient. But the ex-shareholders of Yukos appeal the annulment. Apart from the appeal procedure in the Netherlands, an annulled arbitral decision may also be recognized and enforced in other countries like France. Therefore the annulment may be only the beginning of a longstanding dispute to recognize and enforce the three arbitral awards according to Art. V New York Convention.