Who gains from saving nature
Ledger 1 : 33 — For each dollar financing nature-based solutions in 2023, about $33 financed activities harmful to nature. (UNEP)
Cases / Oil, gas and coal operations · Netherlands · 2019–2023

RWE sought €1.4bn from the Netherlands over its coal phase-out

Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.

Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
Not on record
  • The record does not name which of my species, waters, soils or forests were harmed.
What the record lacks: 2 none on record · 1 not disclosed · 1 insufficient · 1 not measured · 1 unclear See the gaps

RWE brought an investment-treaty claim for €1.4bn over the Dutch ban on coal power from 2030 and withdrew it in 2023. Germany agreed €2.6bn of early lignite closure compensation for RWE; for nature, the question is whether such claims and payments slow the closure of fossil capacity.

What?
RWE filed a €1.4bn claim against the Netherlands over its Eemshaven coal plant and withdrew it in autumn 2023; Germany later approved €2.6bn of lignite closure compensation for RWE. CorpWatch
Where?
Eemshaven, Netherlands; Moorburg, Hamburg, and German lignite regions CorpWatch
When?
Dutch coal ban 2019; claim filed 2021; German court ruling 27 July 2023; claim withdrawn autumn 2023; lignite approval 13 December 2023 CorpWatch
Who?
Gained
  • RWE — €2.6bn early lignite closure compensation, approved by the European Commission on 13 December 2023 BNN Bloomberg
  • RWE — €216m of the €317m paid in the December 2020 hard-coal closure auction dpa-AFX / Börse Online
  • Vattenfall — Share of the German nuclear exit settlement, reported at €1.425bn (2021)
  • Vattenfall — Dutch state payment of €52.5m for the early closure of the Hemweg-8 plant in 2019
Lost
None on record
Harmed
None on record
Why?
RWE challenged the Dutch ban on coal power from 2030. The sources do not state why Germany agreed closure compensation; a 2019 research service note of the German parliament said the state was not legally obliged to pay.
How?
Investor claim under the Energy Charter Treaty, filed with ICSID; state-approved closure payments and auction premiums. CorpWatch
6 of 6 questions answered from the record

What happened

The record, in order.

The Netherlands banned coal-fired electricity from 2030 in 2019. RWE filed a claim with ICSID in 2021 seeking €1.4bn over its Eemshaven plant, according to CorpWatch.

After the German Federal Court of Justice ruled on 27 July 2023 that the Energy Charter Treaty arbitration clause is invalid within the EU, RWE withdrew the claim in autumn 2023. The Hague District Court had found the coal law lawful and no compensation due (CorpWatch).

The European Commission approved on 13 December 2023 the German payment of €2.6bn to RWE for lignite closure, according to BNN Bloomberg.

In a December 2020 hard-coal closure auction, 11 plants shared €317m, of which €216m went to RWE (dpa-AFX).

    In court and with insurers

    Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.

    Lawsuits and rulings

    1. 2021–Outcome not on record
      RWE Eemshaven claim against the Netherlands
      ICSID (investment arbitration) · Civil · RWE AG → Kingdom of the Netherlands

      Claim of €1.4bn withdrawn in autumn 2023, after the German Federal Court of Justice held the treaty's arbitration clause invalid within the EU. CorpWatch

    2. 2009–2010Settled
      Vattenfall claim against Germany over Moorburg cooling water limits
      Energy Charter Treaty arbitration · Civil · Vattenfall AB → Federal Republic of Germany

      Claim of €1.4bn over limits on cooling water drawn from the Elbe; settled in August 2010 on confidential terms. IISD Investment Treaty News

    3. 2012–2021Settled
      Vattenfall claim against Germany over nuclear phase-out
      Energy Charter Treaty arbitration · Civil · Vattenfall AB → Federal Republic of Germany

      Settled in 2021; Vattenfall's share reported at €1.425bn.

    Insurers

    No insurer decision on record.

    What we don't know

    Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.

    Nature

    • Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.

    Court

    • Unclear RWE Eemshaven claim against the Netherlands: outcome not on record.

    Record

    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: total German nuclear closure compensation of about €2.4bn, from a 2021 S&P Global report known only through a secondary summary.
    • Not disclosed Vattenfall's share of the December 2020 hard-coal auction premium was not disclosed.
    • None on record The terms of the 2010 Moorburg settlement were confidential; press suggestions that water-use limits were loosened are not confirmed.
    • None on record The sources do not say who ultimately bore the cost of the closure compensation.

    Did the harm stop?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Who paid?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Sources

    Voices on record: — Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations— Communities and civil society— Researchers

    Press and investigations

    2. News in brief
      IISD Investment Treaty News · 2010-09-23

    Connected cases

    Related matters, and cases linked to this one through the same organisations, with the role each played in both.
    Terms used on this page

    Insurance

    Premium
    The price paid for an insurance policy.

    Law and courts

    Arbitration
    A private dispute process in which an appointed arbitrator, instead of a court, decides the case.

    Science and environment

    PFOA (C8) and PFAS
    PFAS are a large family of human-made chemicals that persist in the environment and the body; PFOA, also called C8, is one of them and was used to make Teflon.
    Similar cases
    Oil, gas and coal operations · Netherlands · date not stated
    Groningen gas field
    Same type: Oil, gas and coal operationsSame countryCourt: outcome not on record
    Oil, gas and coal operations · Chemical pollution · Kazakhstan · date not stated
    Karachaganak oil arbitration and the sulphur-fine reports (Kazakhstan)
    Same type: Oil, gas and coal operationsCourt: outcome not on recordHarm to nature not measured
    Oil, gas and coal operations · Türkiye · 2021–2026
    Turkish holdings' coal expansion alongside renewables (Cenal, Akbelen, İçdaş)
    Same type: Oil, gas and coal operationsCourt: outcome not on recordHarm to nature not measured
    Oil, gas and coal operations · Kenya · 2019
    Kenya tribunal cancels licence for Lamu coal plant
    Same type: Oil, gas and coal operationsCourt: outcome not on recordHarm to nature not measured
    Oil, gas and coal operations · Kuwait · 1991–2025
    Gulf War compensation (UNCC) and Kuwait oil-damage remediation
    Same type: Oil, gas and coal operationsHarm to nature not measured
    Oil, gas and coal operations · Chemical pollution · Kazakhstan · 2024–2026
    Kashagan sulphur environmental fine (Kazakhstan)
    Same type: Oil, gas and coal operationsHarm to nature not measured