CMS Sofia has successfully represented Xylem in settling a dispute with a Bulgarian hydropower producer before the ICC International Court of Arbitration.
Xylem is a Washington-headquartered water technology company.
"The parties to the dispute have previously entered into a supply contract for the delivery of hydropower generators for the rehabilitation of two hydropower plants in Bulgaria," CMS informed. "Later, both parties claimed alleged breaches of the supply contract, leading to the filing of monetary claims and counterclaims for compensation before the ICC International Court of Arbitration."
"The commencement of the arbitration in December 2021 and the case management conference held in June 2022 were followed by seven-month-long negotiations between the parties," the firm reported. "The ICC International Court of Arbitration, in the face of the appointed Sole Arbitrator, supported both parties in their aim to reach a settlement and granted a temporary suspension of the proceedings while the negotiations lasted."
According to CMS, "the whole negotiation process looked a lot more like mediation, although formally a third-party mediator was not appointed [...] The parties ultimately found common ground for an amicable resolution of the dispute and even entered new business opportunities together. In our view, this was the best possible outcome for the parties from both a commercial and legal point of view."
The CMS team was led by Partner Assen Georgiev and included Associate Yana Antonova and Junior Associate Ivan Petrov.
