SPAIN Law and Practice Contributed by: Pablo Silván and Fernando Manzanedo, Ramón y Cajal Abogados, S.L.P.
2. Investment Treaties, Free Trade Agreements and Investment Laws 2.1 Bilateral and Multilateral Investment Treaties Spain has ratified a substantial number of bilateral agreements (BITs signed are over 90, with about 60 still in force). Partners include countries across: • Latin America (Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Cuba, El Salvador, Gua- temala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela); • Africa (Algeria, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Sen- egal and Tunisia); • Asia (China, Iran, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan); • Europe (Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Georgia, Macedonia, Mol- dova, Russia, Serbia and Ukraine); and • The Middle East (Saudi Arabia, Bahrein, Kuwait, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon). Additionally, Spain is party to numerous multilateral agreements, primarily through its membership in the European Union (Spain benefits from all EU trade agreements, including those signed with Canada (CETA), Japan (EU–Japan EPA), South Korea, Mer- cosur (pending ratification), Vietnam, Singapore, and others), the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Devel- opment (OECD). It is highly likely Spain will continue ratifying new trea- ties, especially in the following areas. • Post-ECT strategy – following its withdrawal from the ECT, Spain may seek new bilateral frameworks for investment protection in the field of energy. • EU-led negotiations – Spain will likely ratify future EU agreements, such as EU–Mercosur (pending) EU–Australia (negotiations concluded) or EU–India (ongoing talks). • Tax and digital economy treaties – Spain is expect- ed to adopt more multilateral tax instruments and
legal scholars. Regarding the Antin Infrastructure Services v Spain case, the European Commission announced on 24 March 2025, that the arbitration award constitutes illegal state aid, meaning that if Spain pays the compensation recognised in the award, it will be in breach of EU regulations. Con- sequently, it orders Spain not to pay the amount recognised by the award and to ensure that there is no other payment, enforcement, or application of the arbitration award, either to Antin or to any other entity that has acquired or may acquire the rights derived from it (the decision in this case, which was handled as a pilot case, supports the position of Spain). • Outside the EU, courts generally favour the enforcement of awards, rejecting Spain’s immunity and intra-EU objections. (a) The Federal Court of Australia has issued a ruling against Spain, ordering it to pay over EUR469 million, plus interest and legal costs, for four arbitration awards related to retroactive cuts to renewable energy subsidies (RREEF: EUR59.6 million; 9REN: EUR41.7 million; Wat- kins: EUR77 million; and NextEra: EUR290.6 million). The court dismissed Spain’s claim to sovereign immunity and rejected the European Commission’s intervention. (b) Spain paid, in June 2025, the EUR32 million compensation (EUR23.5 million plus interest) awarded by ICSID to Japan’s JGC in 2021 ( JGC Holdings Corporation v Spain, ICSID Case No ARB/15/27 ). The award, whose rights belong to the US fund Blasket Renewable Investments, has been paid with the amounts that were deposited in Belgium in July 2024, after the seizure of the credit rights that Spain receives from the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol), via Enaire, by virtue of air traffic control fees, was authorised. The Spanish government proceed- ed with the payment of this compensation after receiving approval from the European Com- mission, which has confirmed that it does not constitute illegal state aid. This is the first time an award for cutting renewable energy subsi- dies has been completely enforced.
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