The Washington-based International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) awarded Croatia more than EUR 40m including interest and costs, Croatian media report.

The ICSID ordered Slovenia to pay Croatia's power utility HEP compensation in the sum of EUR 19.987m for for the breach of the 2001 agreement on the Krško Nuclear Power Plant (NEK).

HEP's compensation claim relates to the power Slovenia failed to deliver from 1 July 2002, when Croatia ratified the 2001 NEK agreement, to 19 April 2003, when electricity deliveries from NEK, which is located in Slovenia, resumed.

Under the decision taken by the ICSD on Thursday and released on its website on Friday, Slovenia must also pay interest on the awarded sum at a rate of EURIBOR plus 2%, compounded semi-annually, from 1 July 2002 until the date of payment in full.

The ICSD tribunal also ordered Slovenia to reimburse HEP for its costs of the arbitration and for its legal and other costs incurred in connection with the procedure in the amount of US$10m, along with interest from the date of the award, that is 17 December.

According to a report by the Croatian pubic broadcaster, the sum awarded plus costs and interest exceeds EUR 40m.

The award caps six years of wrangle over the amount of compensation after the ICSID decided in favour of Croatia in July 2009.

HEP launched the arbitration in November 2005, demanding compensation for non-delivery, while Slovenia argued it had offered NEK-generated electricity to HEP twice in 2002, but HEP declined to take it.