Compass Lexecon’s Experts Dr. Manuel Abdala and Professor Pablo Spiller Assist Tribunal in Finding a $172.8 Million Award on Venezuela’s Expropriation of a Metallurgical Complex

Tenaris S.A. and Talta-Trading E Marketing Sociedadde Unipessoal LDA retained Dr. Manuel A. Abdala and Professor Pablo T. Spiller to provide expert testimony on the economic impact of Venezuela’s expropriation of Matesi, a major producer of hot briquetted iron (HBI). Dr. Abdala and Professor Spiller rebutted Respondent's contention that the existence of an intercompany off-take agreement for Matesi's production implied that the expropriated company had no value. The Tribunal sided with Compass Lexecon's analysis of the off-take agreement and awarded a total compensation of $172.8 million (inclusive of pre-award interest at 9% per year). The dispute also included a pre-expropriation claim related to a discriminatory allotment of pellets inputs produced by the state-owned company CVG FMO. The Tribunal found that Compass Lexecon’s analysis accurately reflected the impact of the discriminatory treatment, albeit concluding that Venezuela was not liable for CVG FMO's actions.

Dr. Abdala and Professor Spiller were assisted by a team of professionals including Andres Casserly, Pablo D. Lopez Zadicoff and Marcelo Schoeters. Compass Lexecon worked with a legal team led by Nigel Blackaby, Caroline Richard, and Jeffery Commission of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP and Alex Yanos of Hughes Hubbard and Reed.