Wind turbine manufacturer Vestas has filed a statement of defense and still believes it ”stands strong” in the arbitration case against Finnish energy company Fortum, which has claimed millions in damages from agreements in Russia that were made before the war in Ukraine. 

This is according to the wind turbine manufacturer’s CEO, Henrik Andersen, in an interview with MarketWire.

”We have submitted our statement of defense in the case to the arbitration court in Stockholm and based on this, we still believe that we are in a strong position. The ball is now in Fortum’s court, while we await further developments,” says Henrik Andersen.

The arbitration proceedings were initiated by Fortum’s Irish subsidiary, and Fortum is attempting to invoke guarantees issued by Vestas in connection with their agreements.

The guarantees, which are governed by Swedish law, were issued in support of a Russian framework agreement from 2017 and four Russian agreements for the supply of wind turbines for projects to be built in mid to late 2022.

Vestas withdrew from the agreement when the EU imposed sanctions on Russia, and since then the parties have been unable to agree on the financial aftermath.

The arbitration proceedings were initiated by Fortum on November 28, 2022, and on October 31, 2023, Vestas filed its statement of defense. In the statement of defense, Vestas describes its position in response to Fortum’s allegations and charges.

Fortum will submit its response to Vestas’ statement of defense no later than February 29, 2024. In the meantime, there is an investigation period during which both parties will request documents from the other party.

The arbitration is expected to run until the end of 2024.