Tribunal arbitral : litige fiscal autour de 41 milliards entre le Sénégal et Woodside, les nouveaux développements
The tax dispute between the State of Senegal and Woodside has been taken to arbitration. The proceedings are progressing at the World Bank's International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).
The real work began on March 4, 2026. Seneweb has learned that the court held its first session via videoconference. Then, on March 17, the court issued procedural order number 1, concerning procedural matters.
This establishes the procedural framework of the dispute , defines the key logistical elements, including the procedural timetable, language, document production and evidence management (witnesses/experts).
One step before sentencing
This is the fourth of the six key stages of the procedure. Now, all that remains is to get to the heart of the matter, with the written and oral proceedings and the exchange of briefs (brief, counter-brief, reply, rejoinder), with the hearings to plead and question witnesses/experts.
At the end of this stage, the Tribunal will issue a final ruling that will be binding on the State of Senegal and Woodside. The procedure does not provide for an appeal, although there is a possibility of annulment.
Indeed, in this tax dispute, Woodside had referred the matter to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) of the World Bank on May 30, 2025. Since then, the procedure has progressed well at the level of the arbitration body.
On January 9, 2026, the Tribunal was constituted. Dyalá Jiménez Figueres, a Costa Rican national, was appointed President by her co-arbitrators, in accordance with the agreement of the parties.
On Woodside's side, Philippe Pinsolle has been appointed as arbitrator. Mr. Pinsolle has acted as counsel in more than 300 international arbitrations, particularly in the oil and gas sectors.
The State of Senegal, represented by the State Judicial Agent (AJE), appointed Attila Tanzi as arbitrator. He holds a doctorate in law, is a professor of international law at the University of Bologna, a member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration, and a member of the Supervisory Board of the Tashkent International Arbitration Centre, among other positions.
So, the procedure is currently underway. The two parties should soon move to the decisive stage that will resolve the dispute between the oil company and the State of Senegal.
As a reminder, from the moment the current regime came to power, Woodside, operator of the Senegalese oil field of Sangomar, was hit with a tax adjustment amounting to around 41 billion CFA francs.
The company disputes this amount, arguing that a significant portion of what the Senegalese tax authorities are demanding relates to the application of an exemption that was in effect during the project's development phase.
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