The government has challenged before an English High Court an arbitration award over a cost recovery dispute in the western offshore Panna-Mukta and Tapti oil and gas fields of Shell and Reliance Industries Limited (RIL).

An arbitration tribunal gave favourable award on January 29, 2021," Reliance said in its latest annual report. Reliance and Shell had through the arbitration sought raising of the limit of cost that could be recovered from sale of oil and gas before profits are shared with the government.

The award came this year. Both sides filed clarification applications before the Tribunal. "On April 9, 2021, Tribunal issued its decision on the Clarification Applications of both the parties. It granted the minor correction requested by the Claimants (Reliance and Shell) and has rejected all of the Government of India's clarification requests," it said without giving details. Subsequent to that, the government of India has challenged the award before the English High Court, it said.

Reliance and Shell-owned BG Exploration & Production India Ltd had on December 16, 2010, dragged the government to arbitration over cost recovery provisions, profit due to the State and amount of statutory dues including royalty payable. The government of India also raised counter claims over expenditure incurred, inflated sales, excess cost recovery, and short accounting.

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