THE High Court yesterday stayed the proceedings
for enforcement of award by the International Centre for Settlement of
Investment Disputes (ICSID), requiring the Tanzania Electric Supply Company
Limited (TANESCO) to pay Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited (SCBHK)
over 330bn.
That was after Judge Ama Munisi took into consideration
submissions presented by Advocate Majura Magafu for TANESCO, who informed the
High Court that his client, TANESCO, had already petitioned the Higher Chamber
of ICSID Tribunal, seeking annulment of the award.
He argued that TANESCO had filed two applications in the ICSID,
one for Annulment of the Award and the other for stay to enforce it. The
advocate, thus, sought suspension of proceedings filed, pending determination
of the said two applications before the ICSID.
Advocates Samah Salah, for SCBHK and Joseph Makandege, for
Independent Power Tanzania Limited (IPTL) and Pan African Power Solution
Limited (PAP), also added their weight to the prayer by the counsel for
TANESCO, to quash the proceedings, until the international Tribunal decides the
two applications.
Mr Makandege, being as sisted by Learned Advocates Melchisedeck
Lutema, Augustine Kusalika, Joseph Sungwa, Kay Felician, James Yarah and Saada
Kiveya, all for IPTL/ PAP, strongly submitted that it would be a futile
exercise for the court to precede with the current enforcement proceedings by
SCBHK in view of annulment cases filed by TANESCO and pending before the ICSID.
He, however, quickly pointed out that his clients (IPTL and PAP)
reserved their rights to continue pursuing their pendings before the High
Court, challenging the earlier enforcement proceedings initiated by SCBHK
should TANESCO’s annulment cases in the ICSID fail.
Before the High Court, SCBHK has filed two applications,
Miscellaneous Civil Application No. 687 of 2016, seeking registration and
enforcement of the Award; and Miscellaneous Civil Application No. 745 of 2016,
seeking impoundment of IPTL capacity charges payable by TANESCO and deposition
of the same to the High Court pending hearing and final determination of their
Enforcement Proceeding.
On the other hand, IPTL and PAP have also filed the two
applications in the High Court, namely, Miscellaneous Civil Application No. 801
of 2016, applying for leave to intervene in the bank’s applications; and
Miscellaneous Civil Application No. 802 of 2016, seeking stay of SCBHK’s two
applications.
In these two sets of applications, TANESCO is one of the
respondents.
No comments:
Post a Comment