An international arbitration court has ordered Antrix, the commercial unit of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro), to pay $672m in damages to Devas Multimedia for breaching a satellite contract four years ago.
According to Devas, the International Court of Arbitration (ICA) of the International Chamber of Commerce found Antrix liable for unlawfully terminating the Devas-Antrix agreement in February 2011.
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Devas Multimedia said in a statement: "Devas Multimedia and its shareholders, including highly regarded international investors, are pleased that the ICC Tribunal unanimously ruled in its favor and found that Antrix is liable for unlawfully terminating the Devas-Antrix agreement in February 2011.
"The ICC Tribunal also awarded damages and pre-award interest totalling $672m to Devas, with post-award interest accruing at 18% per annum on that sum until the award is fully paid."
In 2005, Devas entered into an agreement with Antrix to lease 70MHz of S-band spectrum from two Isro satellites for 12 years.
Under the deal, Devas was to pay $300m for the airwaves, which it intended to use for communication services. This contract came under scrutiny when a telecom spectrum auction scandal broke out in the country, prompting the previous government to cancel the deal in 2011.
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By GlobalDataUpon cancellation, the government said it was unable to provide Antrix with an orbit slot in the S-band of frequencies, for commercial use. Devas opposed Antrix’s reasons and started arbitration proceedings in June 2011.
Going forward, the dispute will go to the Delhi High Court for a ruling decision.
