On April 26, Sigdo Koppers Engineering and Construction SA went to the Arbitration and Mediation Center of the Santiago Chamber of Commerce (CAM) to file an arbitration claim against Arauco, where it requested the forced compliance of a contract in order to modernize and increase the capacity of a pulp plant in MAPA’s emblematic project.
The document was signed between the parties in 2018. The amount requested by the engineering company amounts to US $ 307 million, plus changes.
Since then, the process before CAM has progressed smoothly, explain those familiar with the case. One of the latest events was Arauco’s response, where he requested the rejection of Sigdo Koppers’ action. But not only that, the company controlled by Angelini filed a counterclaim against the engineering company requesting that a violation be declared within the term of the contract and, as a result, ordered to pay the associated fine. The amount will be $37,302,818,060, about US$46 million.
In addition, according to its recent financial statements, Arauco requested the “return of the total amount of $60,657,576,943 (US$75 million) provided to Engineering and Construction Sigdo Koppers during the execution of the contract for in different concepts.” As specified by the company in the document for investors, “the discussion period is currently being processed, in accordance with what is established in the rules of the arbitration procedure.”
And they concluded: “Considering that Arauco’s position is supported by strong legal arguments, there is a reasonable margin to obtain a favorable result and so, on June 30, 2023, Arauco has not established any provision for this contingency.” .
From SK Engineering and Construction they confirmed that this process was done in accordance with the provisions of the dispute resolution clause in the contract signed with Arauco.
