RWE v. the Netherlands

On February 2, 2021, German utility RWE filed suit against the Netherlands government under the Energy Charter Treaty alleging that the government failed to allow adequate time and resources to transition away from coal. The Energy Charter Treaty, signed by 55 Parties, aims to protect foreign investments in energy and allows foreign investors to to claim compensation through arbitration for unfair losses due to government regulation. The Netherlands government plans to phase out all coal-fired power plants by 2030. According to news reports, RWE alleges that this policy does not include adequate compensation to phase out or transition to biomass its coal-fired Eemshaven power plant in the Netherlands. Following the German Federal Court of Justice's decision on the inadmissibility of the present arbitration under German and European law, on October 16, 2023, RWE formally requested the discontinuance of the proceeding pursuant to Rule 44 of the ICSID Arbitration Rules. With the Netherlands not opposing the Claimant's request, the Tribunal took note of the discontinuance of the proceeding.