After Guatemala paid off its debt to Teco Energy, the $15.75 million embargo was lifted, resources that the country had allocated for interest payments from some Eurobond holders.
Arguing that from 2008 to 2013 the Guatemalan National Energy Commission set a maximum amount that electricity distribution companies could charge the user, Teco Energy, a company that was a shareholder of Empresa Electrica de Guatemala, sued the country internationally.
After receiving a ruling opposing the international arbitration disputed with Teco Energy, the New York State Supreme Court ordered the seizure of $15.75 million from Guatemala.
Teco Energy is a company that was a shareholder of Empresa Eléctrica de Guatemala and years ago claimed international arbitration, arguing that from 2008 to 2013 the National Energy Commission set a maximum amount that energy distribution companies could charge the user.
Costa Rican businessmen complain that because of export subsidies granted to sugar producers in India, there has been an artificial increase in production, causing prices to fall below costs.
Édgar Herrera, executive director of the Industrial Agricultural League of Sugarcane (Laica), explained to Elobservador.cr that "... These subsidies are greater than those allowed by the World Trade Organization, in the order of $10 billion annually.
The arbitration panel was formed to hear the lawsuit against the State of Guatemala, which was filed because of the suspension of the operations of the El Tambor mine, in San José del Golfo and San Pedro Ayampuc.
After the arbitration claim was filed by the Americans Daniel W. Kappes, Kappes, Cassidy & Associates before the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) on December 11, 2018, the body announced that the panel was formed.
Guatemala asked the WTO to review domestic support measures and alleged export subsidies granted to sugar cane and sugar producers, which are carried out in the Asian country.
Luis Miguel Paiz, manager of Asociación de Azucareros de Guatemala (Asazgua), explained to Prensalibre.com that "... Guatemalan producers are concerned about the impact of Indian subsidies on sugar production, transport, storage and export."
The WTO was part of the panel of experts that will resolve Mexico's lawsuit against Costa Rica, arising from the barriers imposed by the Costa Rican authorities to import the fruit.
The trade conflict emerged because of the barriers that Costa Rica imposes since 2014 to the entry of avocado from Mexico. Because the dispute remains unresolved, the authorities of the North American country requested last November 27 to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to submit the case to an arbitration panel.
Representatives of the El Tambor mine, located in San José del Golfo and San Pedro Ayampuc, filed a $300 million lawsuit against the State of Guatemala.
The arbitration lawsuit was filed by the Americans Daniel W. Kappes, Kappes, Cassidy & Associates, which was registered by the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) last December 11th.
GUPC, the consortium in charge of the Canal expansion, must return $848 million in advances to the Panama Canal Authority.
From the Panama Canal Authority press release:
December 12th, 2018. Contractor of the Design and Construction Contract for the Third Set of Locks of the Panama Canal Expansion Program, Grupo Unidos por el Canal, S.A.
Panama appealed against the first instance ruling, which concluded that Colombia's restrictive customs control measures do not violate WTO rules.
From the statement of the Ministry of Commerce and Industries of Panama:
November 20th, 2018. The Ministry of Commerce and Industries (MICI) on behalf of the Government of Panama filed an appeal against the first instance ruling that found that the restrictive customs control measures implemented by Colombia do not infringe the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO). In this appeal, Panama claims errors in the interpretation of the rules on import restrictions and customs valuation that were argued in Colombia's request for review of its compliance with the judgments in Panama's favor.
The WTO decided that Colombia has complied with a resolution that required it to remove tariffs and restrictions on imports of textiles, clothing and footwear from the Libre de Colón zone in Panama.
The conflict arose after a complaint by Panama after Colombia imposed a tariff on textiles and footwear from the Libre de Colón Zone. The dispute began more than five years ago.
An international tribunal has ruled in favor of the Costa Rican government in a legal process in which US investors denounced arbitrary actions in the development of a real estate project in Esterillos beach.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Trade:
San Jose.On September 19, 2018, the Government of Costa Rica was notified by the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) of the decision adopted by the Arbitral Tribunal in the case of David Richard Aven et al.c.Costa Rica (known as "Las Olas").This arbitration was filed by a group of US investors in 2014, under the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR).
In Costa Rica, the state power company will have to pay $112 million to the contractor of the Chucás hydroelectric project, for "additional expenses that it authorized and then refused to recognize."
In the ruling issued by the International Center for Conciliation and Arbitration (CICA), to which the company Enel Green Power Costa Rica appealed to resolve a conflict that originated in 2015 due to an almost $148 millionincrease in the Chucás hydroelectric project, which has not yet been completed, it was established that Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) acted with "bad contractual faith".
The WTO has established a new compliance panel to verify whether or not the South American country has complied with the ruling mandating it to withdraw the tariff on imports of textiles and footwear from Panama.
The decision of the Dispute Settlement Body of the World Trade Organization (WTO) was made at the request of the Panamanian government, which requested a panel be established for a second time, arguing that the South American country continues to impose restrictions on the importation of the products in question"... and that it wanted the trade dispute to be addressed within the framework of the WTO."
An end has been reached to the additional time period requested by Colombia to continue charging the 10% tariff on textiles and footwear coming from the Colon Free Zone, but it is not known whether they will continue to implement the measure.
The World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled in favor of Panama and ordered Colombia to stop charging the tariff, but despite this, the South American country extended the measure until November.
The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes has ruled in favor of El Salvador in the dispute with the mining company OceanaGold, owner of the El Dorado gold mine.
From a press release by OceanaGold Corporation:
(MELBOURNE) OceanaGold Corporation (TSX/ASX/NZX: OGC) (the “Company”) has been advised that the arbitration tribunal constituted by the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”) has found in favour of the Government of El Salvador (the “Government”) in its dispute with an OceanaGold indirect subsidiary company, Pac Rim Cayman LLC. ICSID granted an award of US$8 million to the Government of El Salvador to cover its legal fees and costs.