Renewables Projects - Ten reasons you should be seeking to secure investment treaty protection

1. You are investing or otherwise involved in a renewables project based outside of your home jurisdiction
2. You are contracting with a state-owned or controlled entity
3. The project is located in an emerging market or a market in transition (e.g. post-Brexit UK)
4. The courts in the country in which you are doing business are perceived as being unfair and staffed by inexperienced and less competent judges
5. The legal process in that country is an inefficient one and one which is potentially subject to government influence
6. The government of the country in which you are doing business has previously interfered with investments made by foreign investors e.g. by withdrawing subsidies or other incentives, permits or licences
7. The government of the host country has a history of levying taxes in a manner that adversely impacts foreign investors
8. The country in which you are doing business has 'form' for nationalising assets
9. Foreign investors are treated negatively compared to domestic investors, or investors from other countries
10. It might be helpful to be able to have a means of exerting pressure on the government of the host state should problems arise and/or you might need assistance from the government if there is local opposition to the project

If any of the above apply, you likely need to know more about how your investments can be structured to take advantage of international investment protection treaties.  These can provide invaluable protection for foreign investments and direct recourse against host states in the event of interference with the investment. Ensuring investment treaty coverage at the outset of a new project or investment is key – restructuring the project or transaction in order to secure treaty protection at a later date could run the risk of 'abuse of process' type defences, and thus ultimately be unsuccessful. 

We explain investment treaty protection for renewables projects in our Renewable Energy Disputes podcast series.

Do get in touch if you are interested in finding out more.

Authors: Emma Johnson and Matthew Saunders