Cairn Energy wins freeze on India-owned assets worth €20m in Paris
UK-listed Cairn Energy wins a freeze on some of India’s state-owned assets in Paris, worth over €20m (£17m), as the company dials up the pressure on the government of India to pay an arbitration award that it won last year.
Cairn said the freeze was ordered by a French tribunal on around 20 centrally located properties owned by the Indian government including some in the 16th and 14th arrondissements. It forms part of a guarantee of $1.2bn (£871m) owed to the FTSE 250 company according to a Reuters report.
The Scottish oil producer was awarded damages by an international tribunal of over $1.2bn (£871m) plus interest and costs in December after a drawn-out tax dispute with the government of Narendra Modi.
“This is the necessary preparatory step to taking ownership of the properties and ensures that the proceeds of any sales would be due to Cairn,” the company said, according to reports.
When New Delhi filed an appeal, the London-listed firm started identifying Indian assets overseas, including the assets of national carrier Air India, that could be seized in the absence of a settlement.
The escalation of Cairn’s legal battle with the Modi government comes on the heels of the UK government’s aggressive pursuit of a post-Brexit trade deal with India.
Cairn has a market capitalisation of £749m and 204 employees.