Region: Hungary

A US court has refused to dismiss a Hungarian investor’s action to enforce a US$261 million Energy Charter Treaty award against Croatia – finding the state’s sovereign immunity defence was “foreclosed” as a result of an appellate ruling on other intra-EU ECT awards.

17 April 2025

The European Commission has launched infringement proceedings against Hungary after the state broke with the rest of the European Union over the retroactive application of the Komstroy ruling on intra-EU arbitrations under the Energy Charter Treaty.

30 July 2024

Hungary has broken with other EU member states over their understanding of the effects of the European Court of Justice’s ruling in Komstroy – declaring that international law requires the Energy Charter Treaty be amended by its signatories to ensure its non-applicability to intra-EU disputes. 

03 July 2024

A Saudi-owned Spanish renewables investor has filed a BIT claim against Mexico, while Hungary is facing an Energy Charter Treaty claim brought by a Cypriot entity linked to a defunct Austrian bank.

14 March 2024

An UNCITRAL tribunal is in place to hear a contractual claim filed by Hungarian oil and gas group MOL against Croatia over the exploitation of hydrocarbons – the latest in a series of arbitrations between the parties.

23 June 2023

Hungary has introduced a new provision allowing courts to set aside awards in construction disputes that failed to properly consider opinions issued by a state-endorsed performance body – a move practitioners have called “problematic”.

22 June 2023

A Swiss court has refused Croatia’s request for review of an UNCITRAL award in favour of Hungarian oil and gas group MOL in the wake of a corruption verdict against a former prime minister, ruling the arbitrators were not bound by the findings of the Croatian criminal courts.

13 October 2022

An ICSID tribunal has ordered Croatia to pay US$184 million plus interest to Hungarian oil and gas group MOL after rejecting allegations that the claimant’s CEO paid bribes to a former prime minister – while dismissing the rest of the investor's billion-dollar claim.

06 July 2022

A court in New Zealand has said it can hear a request for recognition of an ICSID award against Hungary, even though there is no evidence the state has any assets in the jurisdiction.

04 February 2022

UPDATED: Before the holiday break, Cameroon defeated an ICSID claim worth nearly US$1 billion and new claims were filed against Mali, Guyana, Peru and Hungary – while Italy failed again to knock out an Energy Charter Treaty case.

04 January 2022