Lithuania: Supreme Court rejects Veolia’s appeal in case against state

Lithuania’s Supreme Court has rejected an appeal of French energy group Veolia and its Lithuanian partners against an unfavourable court ruling in their dispute with the Energy Ministry, Baltic News Network reports. Earlier, the Court of Appeal upheld a lower court decision to accept the ministry’s lawsuit for examination. Veolia and its partners, Vilniaus Energija and Litesko, argued that the dispute could not be heard in Lithuanian courts without the foreign investor’s consent. The Energy Ministry is claiming EUR 240mn in compensation from Veolia and its partners for alleged damage to the state and consumers. The dispute relates to the leasing of district heating networks in several Lithuanian municipalities in 1993-2003.