In July 2005, affiliates of General Electric Company (“GE”) and Bechtel Group, Inc. (“Bechtel”) concluded comprehensive settlements with the Government of India of their claims relating to the Dabhol Power Project. The Dabhol Project was the largest foreign investment in India to date, and GE and Bechtel each owned 10% of the Project. The Government of India and its political subdivisions, through a series of coordinated actions, expropriated the Dabhol Power Project. The settlements resolve GE and Bechtel’s Dabhol claims in pending arbitrations under bilateral investment treaties, as well as numerous litigations pending in India that had been brought against GE and Bechtel entities in efforts to enjoin arbitrations or otherwise thwart GE’s and Bechtel’s claims.
The July 2005 settlements, concluded just before the start of a three-week arbitration hearing in London, represent the successful culmination of Simpson Thacher’s four-year representation of GE and Bechtel in connection with their efforts to recover their investments in the Dabhol Project. In 2003, Simpson Thacher succeeded in recovering nearly $60 million in political risk insurance on behalf of GE and Bechtel from the Overseas Private Investment Corporation. In 2005, Simpson Thacher secured an award of almost $125 million on behalf of Bechtel in an International Chamber of Commerce arbitration against the Indian State of Maharashtra and its affiliates for breaches of the Dabhol Power Company Shareholders Agreement. In addition, Simpson Thacher initiated international arbitrations on behalf of GE and Bechtel against the central Government of India under the India-Mauritius and the India-Netherlands Bilateral Investment Treaties for expropriation of their investments in the Dabhol Project. In all, Simpson Thacher recovered approximately $425 million for GE and Bechtel.
The Simpson Thacher Dabhol team includes Jack Kerr, Rob Smit, David Vann, Lauri Sawyer, Tyler Robinson, Janet Whittaker, Katherine Cleary, Robert Keller, Christal Lint, Alexander Uff, Christopher Evans, Amiad Kushner, Reynelle Brown, Geert Potjewijd and former associates Liz Ingles and Gena Hatcher. The team received assistance in the structuring and negotiating of the settlement from George Miller and Joel Karansky in the corporate group. This summer we have been assisted by summer associates Philip Mirrer-Singer, Justin Engel, Howard Wachtel, Emily Kimball, Raj Parekh, Michael Ybarra, and Robin Nunn. The team receives invaluable paralegal assistance from Cyrena Terricone, Mike Guerrero, Lindsey Dorval, Daniele Dubois, and Jennifer Avila.