Title

AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF ROMANIA AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE HELLENIC REPUBLIC ON THE PROMOTION AND RECIPROCAL PROTECTION OF INVESTMENTS

Preamble

The Government of Romania and the Government of the Hellenic Republic,

Hereinafter referred to as the "Contracting Parties",

DESIRING to intensify their economic cooperation to the mutual benefit of both countries on a long term basis,

HAVING as their objective to create favourable conditions for investments by investors of either Contracting Party in the territory of the other Contracting Party,

RECOGNIZING that the promotion and protection of investments, on the basis of this Agreement, will stimulate the initiative in this field,

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Body

Article 1. Definitions

For the purposes of this Agreement:

1. "Investment" means every kind of asset and in particular, though not exclusively, includes:

a) Movable and immovable property and any other rights in rem, such as ususfructus, mortgages, liens or pledges;

b) Shares in and stock and debentures of a company and any other form of participation in a company;

c) Long term loans (related to investments) and claims to money or to any performance under contract having a fianancial value:

d) Intellectual property rights;

e) Business concessions conferred by law or under contract, including concessions to search for, cultivate, extract or exploit natural resources.

2. "Returns" means the amounts yielded by an investment and in particular, though not exclusively, includes profit, interest, capital gains, dividends, royalties and fees.

3. "Investor" shall comprise, in respect of either Contracting Party, nationals and legal persons or other legal entities constituted or otherwise duly organised in accordance with the laws of that Contracting Party and having their effective economic activities in the territory of that same Contracting Party.

4. "National" means:

a) In respect of Romania, any natural person having Romanian citizenship in accordance with Romanian laws and regulations.

b) In respect of the Hellenic Republic, any natural person having or acquiring Greek nationality in accordance with the Greek Nationality Code.

5 . "Territory" means in respect of either Contracting Party, the territory under the sovereignty of Romania or of the Hellenic Republic respectively, including the territorial sea, as well as maritime areas over which the respective State exercises, in conformity with international law, sovereign rights or jurisdiction.

Article 2. Promotion and Protection of Investments

1. Each Contracting Party promotes in its territory investments by investors of the other Contracting Party and admits such investments in accordance with its legislation.

2. Investments by investors of a Contracting Party shall, at all times, be accorded fair and equitable treatment and shall enjoy full protection and security in the territory of the other Contracting Party. Each Contracting Party shall ensure that the management, maintainance, use, enjoyment or disposal, in its territory, of investments by investors of the other Contracting Party, is not in any way impaired by unjustifiable or discriminatory measures.

3. Investors of either Contracting Party shall be permitted to engage top managerial and technical personnel (the level of chief of sectors included), of their choice, nationals of either Contracting Party, to the extent permitted by the legislation in force in the host State. Subject to the laws relating to the entry and sojourn of aliens, this aforementioned personnel shall be permitted to enter and to remain in the territory of the other Contracting Party for the purpose of establishing and administering their investment.

4. A possible change in the form in which the investments have been made does not affect their character as investments, provided that such a change does not contradict the laws and regulations of the relevant Contracting Party.

5. Returns from the investments and in cases of reinvestment, the income ensuing therefrom, enjoy the same protection as the initial investments.

6. Each Contracting Party shall observe any other obligation it may have entered into with regard to investments of investors of the other Contacting Party.

7. Each Contracting Party shall make public all legislation and regulations that pertain to or affect investments in its territory by investors of the other Contracting Party.

Article 3. Most Favoured Nation and National Treatment Provisions

1. Each Contracting Party shall accord to investments, made in its territory by investors of the other Contracting Party, treatment not less favourable than that which it accords to investments of its own investors or to investments of investors of any third State, whichever is more favourable.

2. Each Contracting Party shall accord to investors of the other Contracting Party, as regards their activity in connection with investments in its territory, treatment not less favourable than that which it accords to its own investors or to investors of any third State, whichever is more favourable.

3. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article shall not be construed so as to oblige one Contracting Party to extend to the investors of the other Contracting Party the benefit of any treatment, preference or privilege resulting from:

a) Its participation in any existing or future customs union, economic union, regional economic integration agreement or similar international agreement, or

b) Any international agreement or arrangement relating wholly or mainly to taxation.

Article 4. Expropriation

1. Investments by investors of either Contracting Party in the territory of the other Contracting Party, shall not be expropriated, nationalised or subjected to any other measure the effects of which would be tantamount to expropriation or nationalisation (hereinafter referred to as "expropriation"), except under the following conditions:

a) The measures are taken in the public interest and under due process of law:

b) The measures are clear and on a non discriminatory basis:

c) The measures are taken against payment of prompt, adequate and effective compensation. Such compensation shall amount to the market value of the investment affected immediately before the measures reffered to above in this paragraph were taken or became public knowledge, whichever is the earlier, it shall include interest from the date of expropriation until the date of payment at a normal commercial rate and shall be freely transferable, without delay, in a freely convertible currency. The amount of the compensation shall be subject to review by due process of law, within the framework of the legislation of the Contracting Party, in the territory of which the investment has been made.

2. The provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article shall also apply where a Contracting Party expropriates the assets of a company which is constituted under the laws in force in any part of its own territory and in which investors of the other Contracting Party own shares.

Article 5. Compensation for Losses

1. Investors of one Contracting Party whose investments in the territory of the other Contracting Party suffer losses owing to war or other armed conflict, a state of national emergency, civil disturbance or other similar events in the territory of the other Contracting Party shall be accorded by the latter Contracting Party treatment, as regards restitution, indemnification, compensation or other settlement, no less favourable than that which the latter Contracting Party accords to its own investors or to investors of any third State, whichever is more favourable. Resulting payments shall be made without delay and shall be freely transferable in a freely convertible currency.

2. Without prejudice to paragraph 1 of this Article, investors of one Contracting Party who, in any of the situations referred to in that paragraph suffer losses in the territory of the other Contracting Party resulting from:

a) Requisitioning of their investment or part thereof by the latter's forces or authorities, or

b) Destruction of their investment or part thereof by the latter's forces or authorities, which was not required by the necessity of the situation,

Shall be accorded restitution or compensation which in either case shall be prompt, adequate and effective.

Article 6. Repatriation of Investment and Returns

1. Each Contracting Party shall guarantee, in respect of investments of investors of the other contracting Party, the unrestricted transfer of the investment and its returns.

The transfers shall be effected without delay, in a freely convertible currency, at the rate of exchange applicable on the date of transfer, after fulfilment of all financial obligations pertaining to the investment, in accordance with the procedures laid down in the laws and regulations in force in the Contracting Party in the territory of which the investment has been made.

2. Such transfers shall include in particular, though not exclusively:

a) Capital and additional amounts to maintain or increase the investment;

b) Profits, interest, dividends and other current income;

c) Funds in repayment of loans;

d) Royalties and fees;

e) Proceeds of sale or liquidation of the whole or any part of the investment:

f) A portion of the salaries, wages or other earnings, provided for by the relevant legislation of each Contracting Party, received in its territory by nationals of the other Contracting Party, connected with investments covered by this Agreement;

g) Compensation under Articles 4 and 5.

Article 7. Subrogation

If either Contracting Party or its designated agency makes a payment to one of its investors under any financial guarantee against non-commercial risks it has granted in regard of an investment in the territory of the other Contracting Party, the latter shall recognise by virtue of subrogation, the assignment of any right or claim of that investor to the first Contracting Party or its designated agency, without prejudice to the rights of the investor under Article 9 of this Agreement.

Article 8. Settlement of Disputes between the Contracting Parties

1. Any dispute between the Contracting Parties concerning the interpretation or application of this Agreement shall, if possible, be settled by negotiations, through diplomatic channels.

2. If the dispute cannot thus be settled within six months from the beginning of the negotiations, it shall, upon request of either Contracting Party be submitted to an arbitritration tribunal.

3. The arbitration tribunal shall be constituted ad hoc as follows: Each Contracting Party shall appoint one arbitrator and these two arbitrators shall agree upon a national of a third State as chairman. The arbitrators shall be appointed within three months, the chairman within five months from the date on which either Contracting Party has informed the other Contracting Party that it intends to submit the dispute to an arbitration tribunal.

4. If within the periods specified in paragraph 3 of this Article the necessary appointments have not been made, either Contracting Party may, in the absence of any other agreement, invite the President of the International Court of Justice to make the necessary appointments. If the President of the Court is a national of either Contracting Party or if he is otherwise prevented from discharging the said function, the Vice-President or if he too is a national of either Contracting Party or is otherwise prevented from discharging the said function, the Member of the Court next in seniority, who is not a national of either Contracting Party, shall be invited to make the necessary appointments.

5 . The arbitration tribunal shall decide on the basis of respect of the law, including particularly this Agreement and other relevant agreements between the Contracting Parties, as well as the generally acknowledged rules and principles of international law.

6. Unless the Contracting Parties decide otherwise, the tribunal shall determine its own procedure.

7. The tribunal shall reach its decision by a majority of votes. Such decision shall be final and binding on the Contracting Parties.

8. Each Contracting Party shall bear the cost of of the arbitrator appointed by itself and of its representation. The cost of the chairman as well as the other costs will be born in equal parts by the Contracting Parties. The tribunal may, however, in its decision direct that a higher proportion of costs shall be born by one of the two Contracting Parties and this award shall be binding on both Contracting Parties.

Article 9. Settlement of Disputes between an Investor and a Contracting Party

1. Disputes between an investor of a Contracting Party and the other Contracting Party concerning an obligation of the latter under this Agreement, in relation to an investment of the former, shall, if possible, be settled by the disputing parties in an amicable way.

2. If such disputes cannot be settled within six months from the date either party requested amicable settlement, the investor concerned may submit the dispute either to the competent courts of the Contracting Party in the territory of which the investment has been made or to international arbitration.

Each Contracting Party hereby consents to the submission of such dispute to international arbitration.

3. Where the dispute is referred to international arbitration the investor concerned may submit the dispute either to:

a) The International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes, established under the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States, opened for signature at Washington D.C. on 18 March 1965, for arbitration or conciliation, or

b) An ad hoc arbitral tribunal to be established under the arbitration rules of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (U.N.C.I.T.R.A.L.).

4. The arbitral tribunal shall decide the dispute in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement and the applicable rules and principles of international law. The awards of arbitration shall be final and binding on both parties to the dispute. Each Contracting Party shall carry out without delay any such award and such award shall be enforced in accordance with domestic law.

5. During arbitration proceedings or the enforcement of the award, the Contracting Party involved in the dispute shall not raise the objection that the investor of the other Contracting Party has received compensation under an insurance contract in respect of all or part of the damage.

Article 10. Application of other Rules

If the provisions of law of either Contracting Party or obligations under international law existing at present or established hereafter between the Contracting Parties in addition to this Agreement, contain a regulation, whether general or specific, entitling investments by investors of the other Contracting Party to a treatment more favourable than is provided for by this Agreement, such regulation shall, to the extent that it is more favourable, prevail over this Agreement.

Article 11. Consultations

Representatives of the Contracting Parties shall, whenever necessary, hold consultations on any matter affecting the implementation of this Agreement. These consultations shall be held on the proposal of one of the Contracting Parties at a place and at a time to be agreed upon through diplomatic channels.

Article 12. Application

1. This Agreement shall also apply to investments made prior to its entry into force by investors of either Contracting Party in the territory of the other Contracting Party, consistent with the latter's legislation.

2. However, this Agreement shall not apply to disputes already pending on the basis of the Agreement between the Government of the Hellenic Republic and the Government of Romania for the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investments, done in Athens, on September 16, 1991, which shall be settled according to the provisions of that Agreement.

Article 13. Entry Into Force — Duration — Termination

1. This Agreement shall enter into force thirty days after the date on which the Contracting Paries have exchanged written notifications informing each other that the procedures required by their respective laws to this end have been completed. It shall remain in force for a period of ten years from that date.

2. Without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 12 of this Agreement, from the date of its entry into force, this Agreement shall replace the Agreement between the Government of the Hellenic Republic and the Government of Romania for the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investments, done in Athens, on September 16, 1991.

Any investments made under the latter Agreement shall be considered to have been made under this Agreement.

3. Unless notice of termination has been given by either Contracting Party at least one year before the date of expiry of its validity, this Agreement shall thereafter be extended tacitly for periods of ten years, each Contracting Party reserving the right to terminate the Agreement upon notice of at least one year before the date of expiry of its current period of validity.

4. In respect of investments made prior to the date of termination of this Agreement, the foregoing Articles shall continue to be effective for a further period of ten years from that date.

Conclusion

Done in duplicate at Athens, on May 23rd 1997 in the Greek, Romanian and English languages, all texts being equally authentic.

In case of divergence the English text shall prevail.

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF THE HELLENIC REPUBLIC

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF ROMANIA