Singapore's Seatrium and Norway's Aibel, consortium partners for TenneT's Dolwin 5 offshore converter platform project, have initiated arbitration proceedings through the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce. The proceedings stem from differences under their consortium agreement, which both parties mutually desire to resolve amicably via an independent tribunal. Despite the arbitration, work on the 900-megawatt platform, currently in the German North Sea, continues with delivery targeted for 2026.

Nature of the Dispute and Project Background

The dispute involves disagreements over the distribution of revenue and costs related to the joint scope of the project. Furthermore, the parties have made significant financial demands against each other concerning their direct scopes of work. Seatrium claims approximately €180 million from Aibel, while Aibel claims about €113 million from Seatrium. The consortium agreement, established in May 2019, is based on Aibel's design for the DolWin cluster.

Specific Claims and Counterclaims

Seatrium asserts that it fulfilled its direct scope in Singapore despite Aibel's failure to achieve a timely design freeze, which involved multiple design changes. The platform sailed away in October 2023 to Aibel's facility in Haugesund, Norway. The parties mutually agreed that Aibel would be responsible for completing unfinished parts of Seatrium's direct scope after sailaway, attributing the delay to Aibel's late design freeze. Separately, Aibel claims approximately €17 million from Seatrium, contending that certain matters fall within the joint project scope and require Seatrium's contribution. Seatrium is contesting the validity of these claims and seeking clarifications on obligations under the agreement.

Financial Exposure and Current Status

Seatrium notes that, based on preliminary advice, valid claims related to direct scopes of work are to be satisfied from designated reserved consortium funds limited to roughly €5 million. It believes this should not create further financial exposure for either party beyond that amount. The company states it is currently unable to definitively ascertain the financial impact, if any, of the arbitration proceedings.