Study On The International Investment Dispute Settlement Mechanism Under The Energy Charter Treaty

The Energy Charter Treaty(ECT)is the only legally binding multilateral treaty in the current energy field,it is the embodiment of international energy cooperation,it plays an important role in maintaining energy security and protecting investors' interests.ECT binds on the content of the European Energy Charter(Declaration),signed in the 1990 s,promoting broad cooperation in the field of energy.In order to solve the problems of energy cooperation and development,it includes most of the energy value chain,including energy investment,trade,energy environment,energy transition and dispute settlement mechanisms.In particular,the energy investment dispute settlement mechanism,it breaks through the traditional arbitration system that based on mutual agreements and provides a valuable channel for coordinating and alleviating the conflicts and frictions between different countries on energy issues,which embodies the latest development trend of international investment dispute arbitration mechanism,having an important impact on the practice of international investment contracting.Because of its rich content,in addition to the five parts above,it can also be divided into the dispute settlement mechanism between investors and the contracting parties according to the difference of the subject of the dispute,and the dispute settlement mechanism between the contracting parties.Under different mechanisms,the contents and requirements are different,and the way to solve the dispute is different.In view of the limitation of this article,it mainly studies themechanism of investment dispute settlement under ECT.However,China is only the observer of ECT,not officially signed ECT,and thus the dispute settlement mechanism cannot be used in international investment arbitration practice.But in2015,China signed the International Energy Charter(Declaration),and proposed“The Belt and Road” strategy,in such an international and domestic situation,it is necessary for China to analyze its pros and cons to consider whether to join ECT,so that the dispute settlement mechanism under ECT could be applied in the future.The article is divided into three chapters.Firstly,starting from the origin of ECT,the reason of international society especially the European countries would advocate the establishment of an energy community at the end of last century.And then about the operation and development of ECT,which includes energy investment,energy trade,energy transition,energy efficiency and dispute settlement mechanism,compared with the current ICSID mechanism prevailing in the field of international investment to analyze its characteristics.From the jurisdiction of energy investment disputes,the application of law to the enforcement of arbitration award,briefly introduce its function and evaluation in international society.Secondly,the article studies the defects of ECT dispute settlement mechanism from two aspects with combination of typical cases,from “denial of benefits clause”in “Plama Consortium Limited v.Republic of Bulgaria” to “provisional application clause” in “Yukos Universal Limited v.the Russian Federation”,and how to apply the fair and equitable treatment in international arbitration practice with “AES Summit,AES-Tisza v.Hungary”,disclosing its defects and unreasonable rules.By combining with the historical background of the birth of ECT and the international energy situation at that time,consulting the relevant literature and drawing on the existing mechanism,to put forward relevant suggestions for its improvement.At last,provided China's signing of the 2015 International Energy Charter(Declaration)and “The Belt and Road” strategy,combined with the current application of China's international energy investment dispute settlement to research that whether it is necessary for China to join ECT and apply its investment dispute settlement mechanism as a strong support for enhancing China's own voice on energyand ensuring the safety of energy supply.In conclusion,I think that China can join ECT conditionally and use its investment dispute settlement mechanism flexibly,by improving the domestic relevant energy system and legislation with analyzing the impact of the system on China's energy problems,providing protection for the development of “The Belt and Road” strategy and enhancing the right to speak and rule-making in the field of international energy.