The hunt for Russian assets in France continues: Oschadbank takes the baton from Naftogaz
24 April 12:42
Oschadbank has registered a seizure of Russian assets in France worth about 87 million euros. This was reported by the press service of the Ukrainian bank, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
It was explained that under French law, Oschadbank, as the first claimant, has a priority right to satisfy its claims from the seized property.
What kind of case is it?
The French Republic has recognized the 2018 award of the Arbitral Tribunal in the claim of Oschadbank JSC against the Russian Federation in the amount of more than USD 1.11 billion.
This is about compensation for losses incurred by Oschadbank as a result of Russia’s illegal expropriation of Oschadbank’s assets in Crimea after Russia’s illegal invasion and occupation of this sovereign territory of Ukraine.
Oschadbank also said that despite the successful progress in compensating losses in France, it will continue to pursue all available legal means to bring about full enforcement of the arbitral award against the Russian assets.
Naftogaz also claims Russian assets in France
The Paris court recognized and authorized the enforcement of the Hague arbitration award for compensation for damages caused by the illegal expropriation of Naftogaz’s assets in Crimea in the amount of $5 billion.
As Naftogaz recently reported, as part of this process, the company has already registered encumbrances on a number of assets owned by the Russian state and located in France, with a total value of more than EUR 120 million. This is the first step towards the enforcement of the arbitral award.
Naftogaz initiated arbitration proceedings against Russia claiming compensation for Moscow’s illegal seizure of its property in October 2016. After many years of arbitration proceedings, on April 12, 2023, the tribunal formed under the auspices of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ordered Russia to pay Naftogaz more than USD 5 billion.
Who else is suing Russia over thefts in Crimea
In June 2015, 18 companies and an individual applied to the Hague arbitration for property lost in the annexed Crimea. on May 2, 2018, the arbitration tribunal issued a unanimous award on liability and damages. According to preliminary information, the amount exceeded USD 140 million.
In November 2023, Ukraine’s largest private energy holding DTEK of Rinat Akhmetov reported that the arbitration court in The Hague had fully satisfied DTEK’s claim against the Russian Federation for the seizure of assets in the illegally annexed Crimea and ordered Russia to pay the Ukrainian company $267 million in damages. The trial on DTEK Krymenergo’s claim against Russia had been ongoing since 2017.
Privatbank, Ukrnafta, Belbek airport, Stabil, and Everest Estate have also filed lawsuits against Russia to protect their property in Crimea on the basis of the Ukrainian-Russian intergovernmental agreement on the promotion and mutual protection of investments.
Ukrenergo is also suing Russia for illegally expropriated energy assets and investments in Crimea. The amount of the invoice issued by the company to the aggressor is €527 million. This claim will be considered by the Arbitration Tribunal in Paris.
There have been other lawsuits filed in international courts, demanding not only money but also Russian foreign property as compensation.
As a reminder, in March 2014, about 480 Ukrainian enterprises and organizations were “nationalized” in the Russian-annexed Crimea.
