Facts: The claimants, Operafund Eco-Invest SICAV Plc and Schwab Holding AG, had secured an ICSID award against Spain under the Energy Charter Treaty (‘ECT’). In the said award, Spain was ordered to pay damages for revoking renewable energy incentives. The claimants registered the ICSID award in England pursuant to the Arbitration (International Investment Disputes) Act 1966. In January 2024, they assigned “all rights and interests” in the ICSID award to Blasket Renewable Investments LLC, which sought to be substituted as claimant in the English enforcement proceedings.
Spain opposed substitution, arguing that ICSID awards are not assignable under the ICSID Convention or the ECT, and that no issue estoppel arose from Australian proceedings in which assignability had been considered. The question for the Commercial Court was whether the assignment was valid and, if not, whether Blasket could nonetheless step into the enforcement action.
Held: The Commercial Court refused the substitution. HHJ Pelling KC held that there was no issue estoppel, as the Australian judgment was not final and conclusive, and Spain had not submitted to that jurisdiction for estoppel purposes. On the substantive question, the Court concluded that ICSID awards are not capable of assignment as a matter of treaty interpretation. The judge emphasised that the Convention creates a self-contained enforcement mechanism and that the investor’s rights under an ICSID award are inherently personal. In a key passage, he stated: “As a matter of construction of the ICSID Convention, awards made in arbitrations convened in accordance with it are not capable of assignment.” He further held that registration under the 1966 Act does not create a new set of assignable domestic rights; registration merely gives the award the same force and effect as a High Court judgment for enforcement purposes.
The decision has significant implications for award-trading practices, particularly for entities seeking to purchase and enforce ICSID awards through specialist vehicles.
Operafund Eco-Invest SICAV Plc and Schwab Holding AG v Kingdom of Spain [2025] EWHC 2874 (Comm)
