Czech Republic loses arbitration dispute with Eastern Sugar

The Czech Republic has lost an arbitration dispute with the Netherlands-based company Eastern Sugar BV, the parent company of a Czech branch that is the Czech Republic's second largest sugar producer. Both the head of the Czech branch of Eastern Sugar and a spokesman for the Finance Ministry on Monday confirmed the decision, after the story was first reported by the Prague-based journal Czech Business Weekly. The arbitration case saw Eastern Sugar seeking the equivalent of close to 120 million US dollars in damages for unfair quota allocation by the government, a case dating back to 2003. The final amount awarded is less than what was being asked for: 700 million crowns, the equivalent of around 33 million USD.