TerraBrown

Who we are

TerraBrown AG is a forward-thinking challenger in the commodities industry

We believe in rewriting the rules of commodities asset management and trading with transparency, responsibility, and reliability.

NEWS

TerraBrown, Swiss coal supplier, pursues justice amidst EU sanctions against Russia

27.09.2024

Denmark-based tribunal sparks controversy by ruling that EU sanctions serve as a “Get of Jail Free” card for Danish utility group Aalborg Forsyning.

A Denmark-based international arbitration tribunal recently issued its ruling in the prolonged legal dispute between TerraBrown, a Swiss coal trader of EuroChem Group, and Nordjyllandsværket A/S (a local Danish power company owned by Aalborg Forsyning).
The dispute originated in 2022, following the onset of the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Aalborg Forsyning seized the opportunity to bolster its public image by exiting its contractual obligations with TerraBrown, using sanctions as a pretext to avoid financial repercussions. While Aalborg’s principal shareholder’s desire to distance itself from Russian-sourced coal might be politically understandable, it is unrelated to the rule of law.
Although the tribunal upheld TerraBrown’s right to payment for the coal delivered, it unfortunately failed to recognize that TerraBrown, a business not targeted by the EU sanctions, is obligated to comply with sanctions just like Aalborg Forsyning. Mere suspicion of non-compliance is not a valid reason to undermine its business.
EU Sanctions Do Not Target Non-Listed Businesses
Prior to the EU and Swiss embargoes on Russian coal taking effect in August 2022, TerraBrown had been one of the leading coal traders in the EU for more than 16 years. Up until August 2022, TerraBrown and its EU subsidiaries had been employing more than 136 people in the EU and paid millions of euros in taxes in the EU annually.
TerraBrown emphasizes that it has not been designated under EU sanctions regulations. Furthermore, the Council of the EU explicitly confirmed that TerraBrown was not targeted by EU sanctions, nor was it intended to be subject to restrictive measures. Any negative consequences are, therefore, unintended and highlight flaws in the current sanctions regime inasmuch as it applies to European businesses, compounded by a fundamental misunderstanding of the EU sanctions' objectives by the tribunal.
TerraBrown is a compliant European business, fully capable of navigating and applying sanctions on its own. As a responsible operator, it adheres to all relevant regulations and does not require external parties to intervene or make assumptions about its ability to comply.
TerraBrown has made substantial efforts to ensure its non-designated status and compliance framework are well understood by EU operators and regulators. The challenges some legal practitioners continue to face in navigating the sanctions regime against Russia highlight the need for further efforts to effectively address and mitigate the unintended side effects of these sanctions.
TerraBrown strongly opposes the exploitation of flaws in the EU sanctions regime by operators vested with quasi-public powers, who misuse these gaps for personal gain and to evade proper due diligence under the guise of political motives.
TerraBrown reserves the right to pursue all available legal remedies to recover the value lost due to the indiscriminate application of restrictive measures and the misrepresentation of the contents of the confidential arbitral award.

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Assets recovery, debt collection and financial management

TerraBrown AG provides a range of financial and consultancy services for clients across the globe. We are your partner of choice in assets recovery, debt collection and financial management.

Сommodity asset management and trading

Capitalizing on our deep expertise in trading, logistics services and freightage, we supply the commodities to both Asia-Pacific and Atlantic markets.

Our representative offices are conveniently located throughout the major Asian countries. We are present in Singapore, Korea, China, Indonesia.

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We believe that highly-competent and motivated team is the main driver of our business. A career at TerraBrown reflects sticking to a diverse, idea-open and collaborative culture at the same time providing you with perspectives to overcome challenges and grow as professionals.

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TerraBrown AG

+41 41 727 16 90

info@terrabrownag.com

Baarerstrasse 37, 6300 Zug, Switzerland