I was thinking about this last night. There's not enough information right now but what if, given ICSID procedures take quite a long time, that we had arranged/requested an mediated arbitration to discuss a way to an amicable resolution, but just to get it in the calendar to occur after the emergency orders are posted?
So, if this request doesn't impact the emergency ruling then this could be a masterstroke: get the emergency orders in and approved to fire a shot across the bow of the DRC, highlighting what could be expected to follow should this case proceed to award, and then follow that up with a sit-down sometime early in the New Year to find a mutually acceptable outcome. The old carrot-and-stick perhaps. NF has always said this is about pressuring a resolution, so maybe they think now is the time.
Of course that raises the question of why not just wait for the request until after the emergency orders are approved, so this could be all wrong, and the requested arbitration claim isnt even confirmed yet, but just some food for thought. Could be a very positive development if true, and AVZ had received some indication that a discussion could deliver a favorable result.
So, if this request doesn't impact the emergency ruling then this could be a masterstroke: get the emergency orders in and approved to fire a shot across the bow of the DRC, highlighting what could be expected to follow should this case proceed to award, and then follow that up with a sit-down sometime early in the New Year to find a mutually acceptable outcome. The old carrot-and-stick perhaps. NF has always said this is about pressuring a resolution, so maybe they think now is the time.
Of course that raises the question of why not just wait for the request until after the emergency orders are approved, so this could be all wrong, and the requested arbitration claim isnt even confirmed yet, but just some food for thought. Could be a very positive development if true, and AVZ had received some indication that a discussion could deliver a favorable result.
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