Frontier Holdings Seeks Enforcement of International Court Ruling Against PEL

Frontier Holdings Ltd (FHL), an international oil and gas exploration company, has sent a letter to the Petroleum Division, requesting action to enforce a ruling from the Singapore International Commercial Court (SICC) against Petroleum Exploration (Pvt) Ltd (PEL), a local energy firm.

The letter, addressed to the Director General of Petroleum Concessions at the Petroleum Division, outlines FHL’s win in jurisdictional proceedings before the SICC. The court reversed an earlier decision by an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) arbitral tribunal, which had ruled it lacked jurisdiction over the dispute between FHL, a foreign working interest owner (FWIO), and PEL, a Pakistani working interest owner (PWIO), concerning the Petroleum Concession Agreements and Joint Operating Agreements for the Badin IV South and Badin IV North Blocks in Sindh.

FHL initiated ICC arbitration after disagreements with PEL. Initially, the ICC tribunal determined that the dispute should be resolved through domestic arbitration in Pakistan rather than international arbitration. FHL challenged this ruling, appealing to the SICC. On December 30, 2024, the SICC ruled the ICC tribunal had incorrectly interpreted the Badin Concession Documents and confirmed that disputes should be settled through international arbitration outside of Pakistan. The SICC instructed the ICC tribunal to continue with arbitration.

Earlier, on December 10, 2024, FHL won another ruling from the ICC tribunal, which dismissed PEL’s attempt to forfeit FHL’s 27.5% stake in the Badin Blocks. The tribunal upheld FHL’s legal ownership and rejected PEL’s $483 million counterclaims. Additionally, FHL was awarded $7 million in damages, including $2 million in interest at a compound rate of 2% per month. FHL emphasized in its letter that these damages will continue to accumulate until PEL makes the payment.