VILNIUS - A disgruntled Danish investor said last week it would take the Lithuanian government to court after the latter failed to agree to a compensation settlement for barring the investor from a privatization.
Trident Marine, a Denmark-based firm, said April 13 that the government had refused to negotiate a $50 million claim for compensation of lost profits after it was shut out of the sale of Lietuvos Juru Laivininkyste (Lithuanian Shipping Company).
Trident Marine said in a statement that it intended to take its case to the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes in Washington. It also said that it had lodged a complaint against the government and the State Property Fund with the European Commis-sion.
The Danish investor has also filed a suit in the Vilnius regional court against the government, seeking 19.4 million Danish kroner (2.6 million euros) in damages for canceling the LJL privatization process, Judge Algirdas Auruske-vicius told the Baltic News Service.
"The rejection by the government of our offer to negotiate and a ruling by the Supreme Court unfavorable to Trident Marine confirm the state's negative position toward us and our suspicion that the company is being intentionally discriminated against," said Jesper Nielsen, director of Unisea Shipping Group, owner of Trident Marine.
Nielsen, together with Vladimir Vetochkin, owns Unisea Shipping Group.
Trident Marine submitted the highest bid for a 66 percent stake in LJL, at 33 million litas (9.5 million euros). However, it was barred from participating for being "financially unreliable." In February the Supreme Court handed down a ruling backing the property fund's decision.
In mid-March, Trident Marine was hoping to reach a settlement for what it claimed were $50 million in lost profits. The company said that Deloitte & Touche, an international auditing firm, had verified the loss estimate.
LJL owns a fleet of ships that haul metal, timber, bulk cargo and other products. Last fall the government canceled the sale, saying it needed 10 percent of the company's stock for property restitution purposes.
