Dana Gas said on Monday that the Regional Government of Iraqi Kurdistan had failed to comply with court ruling to pay $100mn for breach of contracts.
Earlier this year KRG was instructed by a London court to pay the amount as part of a multi-billion dollar case that the Pearl consortium, led by Dana, brought against Kurdistan.
KRG’s failing to make the payment has prompted the UAE independent gas company to ask the court to enforce the order, a statement said. The claims are due to be heard in London next April.
“An application to the English Court has been made for enforcement of the order, with the prospect of sanctions being imposed on the KRG (Kurdistan Regional Government) for non-compliance,” Dana said in a statement.
In October 2013, the Pearl consortium, which also consists of Crescent Petroleum of the UAE, Austria’s OMV and Hungarian oil and gas group MOL , filed an arbitration case in London seeking to confirm its contract rights and to obtain payments for production.
Dana said it has not received any significant payments from the KRG, which has previously rejected the claims.
It said that Dana’s statement about London court rulings were “misleading” and it was the consortium that owed it billions of dollars.
On Monday, Dana said the London Court of International Arbitration had ordered the KRG to pay the consortium $100mn, which the KRG failed to do by the deadline of 17th of November 2014.
Dana said it had therefore applied on 12th of December to the court for enforcement of the order.
The independent gas company is very active in the semi-autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan.
The Pearl consortium has invested more than $1.2bn, according to the statement, and currently produces an average of over 80,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, including 320mn cubic feet of gas per day.
Kurdistan has attracted major international oil and gas companies in recent years due to its untapped oil and gas reserves and lucrative contracts.
The case is closely watched by companies active in the region.
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