Sustainable Energy Law Notebook

On 23 July, The Netherlands High Court delivered its judgement in the Probo Koala case involving the multinational company Trafigura. The Court reviewed solely the acts that occurred in the port of Amsterdam . However, the High Court declared itself incompetence for judging the matter involving the liability of the municipality of Amsterdam. The Facts Act I : The Probo Koala ship is posted off the coast of Gibraltar. Trafigura orders to proceed onboard with the raw refinery and desulphurisation of remaining substances which resulted in the formation of harzardous slops. Act II : In July, the Probo Koala arrives in the port of Amsterdam where it tries to unload what it estimates to be "cargo residues' and not harzardous waste. The Amsterdam Port Services (APS) first accept the operation. But when they realise the nature of the substances, APS require a much higher price for the treatment. Trafigura refuses to pay and requires its substances to be reloaded onboard. Act III : The...

Today was published in the French Official Journal the Bill authorising the adhesion by France to the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage (2001) (so-called, Bunkers Convention ). ( Loi No. 2010-831 of 22 July 2010 .) The Bunkers Convention, and IMO Convention, aims to ensure 'adequate, prompt and effective compensation' of persons suffering damage caused by spills of oil carried as fuel in ships' bunkers . The Bunkers Convention entered into force on 21 November 2008. Its scope of application is limited to damages occuring within the territory of its member parties , including territorial sea and exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The Convention contains a series of key requirements regarding the liability regime in case of 'pollution damage' : direct action , that can be brought against an insurer; the registered owner must maintain mandatory insurance cover . Three resolutions have been adopted in relation to the Convention....

La Loi No. 2010-788 du 12 juillet 2010 portant engagement national pour l'environnement dite Loi Grenelle II a été publiée au JORF du 13 juillet. The French Green Legislative Act on the national commitment for the environment (so-called Grenelle II ) has been enacted and published on the French Official Journal on 13 July. Références : Legifrance.gouv.fr, JORF No. 160 du 13 juillet 2010 (p.12905); Site du Ministère de l'Ecologie, de l'Energie, du Développement Durable et de la Mer .

I dag, 1. juli 2010, trer i kraft en ny forskrift om utleie av vannkraftanlegg i Norge. Forskriften fastsetter kriterier for utleie og bruk av driftsoperatør. Ifølge §2, forskriften gjelder: " avtaler om utleie av vannkraftanlegg og avtaler med driftsoperatør om bortsetting av drift og vedlikehold, som er knyttet til utbygde konsesjonspliktige vannfall med kraftverk og tilhørende anlegg i medhold av industrikonsesjonsloven §5 ." Forskriften åpner for tre forskjellige avtalesituasjoner, dvs. når: avtaler om utleie med overføring av driftsansvar (§4) = leietakeren overtar både den kommersielle råderetten og ansvaret for drift og vedlikehold av vannkraftverket ; avtale om utleie uten overføring av driftsansvar (§5) = leietakeren overtar kun den kommersielle råderetten over hele eller deler av vannkraftverkets produksjon ; operatøravtaler (§6) = eieren setter bort ansvaret for drift og vedlikehold, men beholder den kommersielle råderetten over vannkraftverket selv . Avtalene...