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Vedanta Ltd has received backing from the apex court to recover $499 million from the Central government for developing the Ravva oil and gas fields.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court set aside a petition brought by the Indian government against a Malaysian arbitration tribunal award, which held that Vedanta was entitled to recover $499 million, much more than the $198.43 million cap set by the Centre in the production sharing contract (PSC) for the oil and gas fields in Andhra Pradesh.
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“We conclude that the enforcement of the foreign award does not contravene the public policy of India, or that it is contrary to the basic notions of justice,” a three-judge Bench comprising Justice S Abdul Nazeer, Justice Indu Malhotra and Justice Aniruddha Bose wrote in the order.
The award, dated January 18, 2011 passed by the tribunal is held to be enforceable in accordance with the provisions of Sections 47 and 49 of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996, the top court said.
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“The award is not contrary to the fundamental policy of Indian law, or in conflict with the notions of justice, as discussed hereinabove. The term of the production sharing contract (PSC) was for a period of 25 years from 28 October 1994, which ended on October 27, 2019. We have been informed that the term of the PSC has since been extended for a further period of 10 years, through the mutual agreement between the parties. This itself would reflect that the performance of the obligations under the PSC were not contrary to the interests of India,” the apex court ruled.
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