According to information published by Global Arbitration Review, the United Arab Emirates airline Air Arabia plans to file an arbitration lawsuit against Armenia. The dispute centers around the Armenian national carrier, Fly Arna.
Fly Arna was established in 2021 as a joint venture between Air Arabia and the Armenian National Interests Fund (ANIF). The Armenian government has since declared the Fly Arna project unsuccessful. Notably, ANIF was also dissolved due to financial difficulties.
The ownership structure of Fly Arna was as follows: 49% was owned by ANIF, another 49% by the International Business Company (a 100% subsidiary of Air Arabia), and the remaining 2% by Lebanese-Armenian businessman Varuzhan Nergizyan.
Attempts by BMG to obtain comments on the matter from Air Arabia and the Armenian government were unsuccessful. Industry experts note that if Air Arabia is indeed preparing an arbitration claim against the Armenian government, official Yerevan will only be notified after the claim is filed.
This will be the second arbitration claim against Armenia this year. Previously, BMG reported that a shareholder of the Zangezur Copper-Molybdenum Combine (ZCMC), the largest mining enterprise in the country, Walnord Finance Limited, filed an arbitration lawsuit against the Armenian government, claiming that their investments in the country were not protected. Walnord Finance Limited owns 12.5% of ZCMC.
"Specifically, the government did not allow Walnord Finance Limited to exercise its legitimate ownership rights to ZCMC shares, resulting in losses of at least USD 1.2 billion," the company stated.
