Energy Charter Treaty

77 Energy Charter Treaty [DECISION With respect to Articles 24(4)(a) and 25 An Investment of an Investor referred to in Article 1(7)(a)(ii), of a Contracting Party which is not party to an EIA or a member of a free-trade area or a customs union, shall be entitled to treatment accorded under such EIA, free-trade area or customs union, provided that the Investment: (a) has its registered office, central administration or principal place of business in the Area of a party to that EIA or member of that free-trade area or customs union; or (b) in case it only has its registered office in that Area, has an effective and continuous link with the economy of one of the parties to that EIA or member of that free-trade area or customs union.] 69 (1) The provisions of this Treaty shall not be so construed as to oblige a Contracting Party which is party to an Economic Integration Agreement (hereinafter referred to as “EIA”) to extend, by means of most favoured nation treatment, to another Contracting Party which is not a party to that EIA, any preferential treatment applicable between the parties to that EIA as a result of their being parties thereto. (2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), “EIA” means an agreement substantially liberalising, inter alia , trade and investment, by providing for the absence or elimination of substantially all discrimination between or among parties thereto through the elimination of existing discriminatorymeasures and/or the prohibition of new or more discriminatory measures, either at the entry into force of that agreement or on the basis of a reasonable time frame. (3) This Article shall not affect the application of the WTO Agreement 70 according to Article 29. Part V: Dispute Settlement [UNDERSTANDING With respect to Articles 9, 10 and Part V As a Contracting Party’s programmes which provide for public loans, grants, guarantees or insurance for facilitating trade or Investment abroad are not connected with Investment or related activities of Investors from other Contracting 69 Decision 5 with respect to the Energy Charter Treaty (Annex 2 to the Final Act of the European Energy Charter Conference). 70 Modification based on Art. 2 of the Amendment to the Trade-Related Provisions of the Energy Charter Treaty.