Ukrainian state energy company Naftogaz is continuing an international campaign to recover compensation for property lost following Russia's annexation of Crimea. The company's lawyers have secured the seizure of Russian assets in several countries, including real estate in Finland and Austria and the research vessel Professor Molchanov in Svalbard, The Wall Street Journal reported on October 26.
The dispute arose after Naftogaz's energy assets in Crimea came under Russian control in 2014.
In April 2023, an international arbitration tribunal in The Hague awarded the company approximately $4.2 billion in compensation. Including interest, the total claim has exceeded $5 billion.
Russia has refused to comply voluntarily with the award. Naftogaz, supported by the U.S. law firm Covington & Burling and partners in other countries, has consequently sought to identify Russian property that could be subject to enforcement measures.
According to the WSJ, one of the most unusual episodes involved the detention of the research vessel Professor Molchanov in the Svalbard archipelago.
Lawyers examined the itinerary of the Russian expedition in advance and concluded that the vessel might not be protected by sovereign immunity, which shields certain categories of state-owned property from compulsory enforcement.
After an application to a Norwegian court, police served seizure documents while the vessel was docked in Barentsburg.
Russian representatives opposed the measures, and the case prompted diplomatic and legal disputes concerning Russia's presence in Svalbard.
Naftogaz's campaign has also targeted other Russian assets in Europe. However, the seizure of property does not in itself mean that the Ukrainian company has received compensation.
Recovering the money requires completing the relevant legal procedures in each jurisdiction, while ownership and the legal status of individual assets may be contested.
The case examined by the WSJ illustrates how an international arbitration award arising from the annexation of Crimea is being pursued through a lengthy process of identifying and seizing Russian assets abroad.