Tanzanian Government Ordered to Pay Australian Firm Over $100 Million

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, ICSID has reportedly ordered the Tanzania government to pay more than $109 million to a group of companies fronted by Australian miner Indiana Resources Ltd.

The payment is in compensation for the controversial 2018 expropriation of a nickel mine project.

Report says an ICSID ad hoc tribunal on July 14 ruled that the government breached the UK-Tanzania Bilateral Investment Treaty when it seized the Ntaka Hill Project held by UK-registered Ntaka Nickel Holdings and Nachingwea UK along with Nachingwea Nickel, a Tanzania-registered firm.

The total award amount of $109.5 million includes interest already accrued to the claimants plus $3.859 million in legal costs to the claimants and the ICSID’s own costs.

Under ICSID rules, Tanzania has 120 days to file an application for annulment of the order.

However, there are growing concerns in Tanzania that this enforcement may include moving to seize aircraft operated by national carrier Air Tanzania, a ploy that was tried before by other winners of international arbitration proceedings against Tanzania and which Indiana Resources previously threatened to pursue.

ALLAFRICA/Christopher Ojilere