Morocco ordered to pay $150 million to Coral Holding in Lasamir case | Economy

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes has ordered Morocco to pay $150 million in compensation to Coral Morocco Holding over the idled La Samir refinery, Moroccan Finance Minister Nadia Fettah said.

Appeal against the judgment

The minister added to the Maghreb Arab Press Agency (official) in Washington that the fine imposed by the World Bank’s board represents 6% of the $2.7 billion demanded by the company, noting that her country is studying the appeal.

The minister said that the center rejected – yesterday, Monday, in Washington – most of the company’s demands.

The holding is affiliated with Sweden’s Corral Petroleum, which is a majority shareholder in Morocco’s only refinery, Samir, which closed in 2015 due to unpaid taxes and huge debts, leaving the kingdom dependent on imports.

An official from the Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development revealed that a new project is under study to restart the refinery, according to the Maghreb Arab Press Agency.

For her part, the minister said that Morocco seeks to develop the energy and petrochemicals sector, while strengthening its leadership in the field of renewable and future energies such as hydrogen.

Claims

This comes amid demands from the National Union of Petroleum and Gas in Morocco to remove obstacles preventing the resumption of the refinery’s work.

Lasamir has been in a deteriorating financial situation since 2008 due to excessive borrowing, with business deterioration resulting from the company’s weak competitiveness in a liberalized market context.

The company’s debts amounted to about $4.4 billion at the end of 2014, in addition to various arrears.