Arnold & Porter Secures Withdrawal of US $600 Million ICSID Claim for Uruguay in Neltume Ports Arbitration
Arnold & Porter represented the Oriental Republic of Uruguay in the successful resolution of an ICSID arbitration brought by Neltume Ports S.A., a Chilean port operator, in which Neltume agreed to irrevocably withdraw with prejudice its US $600 million claim against the state (Neltume Ports S.A. v. Oriental Republic of Uruguay, ICSID Case No. ARB/24/14).
Neltume had filed its Request for Arbitration in April 2024 under the Chile-Uruguay Bilateral Investment Treaty and the ICSID Convention, alleging that a series of governmental measures violated Uruguay’s obligations regarding fair and equitable treatment, national treatment, most-favored-nation treatment, and the prohibition on expropriation without compensation.
Under a September 4, 2026 Termination Agreement, Uruguay accepted no liability and assumed no obligation toward Neltume or its affiliates. Neltume irrevocably agreed not to bring any further claims against Uruguay related to the measures at issue. The parties have jointly requested a final award reflecting the settlement pursuant to ICSID Arbitration Rule 55(2)(b).
Arnold & Porter continues to represent Uruguay in a related ICSID claim brought by ATCO Ltd.
This result also represents the 62nd positive result obtained by Arnold & Porter on behalf of sovereign States in investment arbitrations, out of 66 final or potentially final awards and decisions in such arbitrations. These positive results include both complete victories, where all claims were dismissed on jurisdictional, admissibility, merits, or other grounds, and damages victories, where the tribunal awarded substantially less than the amount claimed. (Additional information regarding these results, including the underlying decisions and the methodology used to compile the firm’s track record, is available in Arnold & Porter’s International Arbitration brochure.)
The Arnold & Porter team included partners Patricio Grané Labat and Mélida Hodgson, senior associate Sebastian Canon Urrutia, associate Agustín Hübner Valdivieso, and foreign attorney Ignacio Tasende.
