Frontier Holdings Ltd (FHL), a foreign oil and gas exploration company, has written to the Petroleum Department requesting intervention to implement an international court ruling against Petroleum Exploration (Pvt) Ltd (PEL), a local energy company.
According to a news report, the letter, sent to the Petroleum Division’s Director General of Petroleum Concessions, highlights FHL’s victory in jurisdictional proceedings before the Singapore International Commercial Court (SICC). The ICC overturned an earlier ruling by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Arbitral Tribunal, which declared that it did not have jurisdiction over disputes between FHL, a foreign worker interest owner (FWIO), and PEL, a Pakistani worker interest owner (PWIO).
The dispute revolves around oil concession agreements and joint operating agreements related to the Badin 4 South and Badin 4 North areas in Sindh.
FHL initiated arbitration proceedings under the ICC framework after a dispute with PEL.
However, the ICC tribunal initially ruled that disputes under the Badin Concession documents should be resolved through domestic arbitration in Pakistan, and not international arbitration under the auspices of the ICC.
FHL objected to the court ruling, and appealed to the SICC. On 30 December 2024, the International Court of Arbitration ruled that the ICC arbitral tribunal erred in its interpretation of the Badin concession documents.
The court explained that such disputes must be resolved through international arbitration outside Pakistan. The International Criminal Court (SICC) ordered the ICC bench to proceed with arbitration in the matter.
Earlier, on 10 December 2024, FHL also obtained a separate ruling from the ICC arbitral tribunal, which rejected PEL’s attempt to expropriate FHL’s 27.5% working interest in the Badin blocks. The court confirmed FHL’s legal ownership and dismissed PEL’s $483 million counterclaims.
In addition, the ICC awarded FHL $7 million in damages, including $2 million in interest calculated at a compound rate of 2 percent per month.
FHL noted in its letter that the damages and interest awarded will continue to accrue until PEL makes the payment.