THE INFLUENCE OF THE ENERGY CHARTER TREATY ON THE EUROPEAN ENERGY MARKET

Abstract

This article provides an overview of the essential features of the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT). Keeping in mind that the European Union needs an efficient and integrated internal energy market, the paper analyses the ECT provisions related to both investment protection and problems of arbitration arising from these provisions. The objective of this article is also to present the most significant recent case law settled under the Energy Charter Treaty. The cases demonstrate the complexity of the problems related to ensuring ECT arbitration. Special attention is paid to the most recent CJEU case (Slovak Republic v. Achmea of 6 March 2018), analysing the investor state arbitration clauses in bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and the implications of this judgment on the energy sector. Although, according to the Vattenfall case, the Achmea case did not affect the jurisdiction of tribunal under the Energy Charter Treaty, this article reflects the challenges that might be expected in the future.