Islamabad (Web Desk): Chairman China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Authority (CPECA) and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Information and Broadcasting Lt Gen (retd) Asim Saleem Bajwa on Friday said that the stay order by the World Bank tribunal on $ 6 billion award versus Pakistan is a great relief in the Reko Diq case.
In a post on Twitter, he said Prime Minister Imran Khan has directed to fully support government of Balochistan for accelerated development of mineral sector in a transparent manner and structured system.
Reko Diq:Stay order by World Bank tribunal on $ 6 Bn award vs Pakistan is great relief.Meanwhile PM directs to fully support GOB for accelerated dev of mineral sec in a transparent manner,structured system, best tech,involve local investors,develop own HR #PakistanMovingForward
— Asim Saleem Bajwa (@AsimSBajwa) September 18, 2020
It is pertinent to mention that the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) has issued a stay on the enforcement of the massive penalty of $6 billion issued against against Pakistan in the Reko Diq mining lease dispute.
In a statement on Thursday, the Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) office termed the positive development a “success” for Pakistan and its legal team.
In July 2019, an ICSID tribunal had slapped a whopping $5.97 billion award against Pakistan for denying the mining lease to Australian company Tethyan Copper Company (TCC).
The tribunal – chaired by Germany's Klaus Sachs and including Bulgarian arbitrator Stanimir Alexandrov and the UK's Lord Hoffmann had ordered Pakistan to pay over $4 billion in damages to the TCC in addition to $1.7 billion in pre-award interest.
Pakistan had moved a plea before ICC for annulment of the award on several grounds. When the country's plea was registered, an interim stay was granted automatically on the enforcement proceedings initiated by the TCC.
