The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has announced the signing of contracts for the UK's first carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) projects in Teesside. Construction of the East Coast Cluster project is scheduled to commence in mid-2025, supported by a £21.7bn government funding commitment announced in October 2024. The agreements will unlock £4bn worth of contracts to be awarded by East Coast Cluster projects to supply chains. In addition, the Low Carbon Contracts Company has signed the Dispatchable Power Agreement (DPA) contract, positioning itself as the contractual private law counterparty and settlement body to the DPA Net Zero Teeside Power project, while also overseeing the Revenue Support Agreement to mitigate financial risks for carbon dioxide transport and storage companies.

Arbitration analysis: Following a subcontracting dispute over additional payment and defective works, an arbitral tribunal held the contract void under mandatory French subcontracting legislation and awarded RGB compensation. The Paris Court of Appeal dismissed [Z] Construction’s annulment application and granted exequatur. It confirmed that article 1492(3) does not permit disguised merits review: alleged errors of law, fact or evidential assessment do not amount to non-compliance with the tribunal’s mission. The court also relied on [Z] Construction’s procedural conduct when rejecting its time-limit challenge and found no public policy breach arising from RGB’s insolvency proceedings. Practitioners should note both the narrow scope of annulment review and the need to address promptly any insolvency-related stay issues during arbitration. Produced in partnership with Gisèle Stephens-Chu, Avocat à la Cour (Paris Bar) and founder of Stephens Chu Dispute Resolution.

Arbitration analysis: This case involves the opposition to confirmation of a New York Convention arbitration award based on the allegation that the award violated US public policy. First, the court distinguished between motions seeking to vacate (non-domestic) arbitration awards and opposition to confirming such awards. When moving to vacate arbitral awards parties are limited to the grounds set forth in §10 to the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) (which does not contain a defence based on public policy) and which must be raised within three months; however, when opposing confirmation of an award, parties may assert public policy as a defence as that defence is contained in the New York Convention. The court held that a public policy defence is permissible when opposing the confirmation of an arbitral award if directed at the award itself, but not if the defence is directed to the contract which was the subject of the underlying arbitration. Written by Luis O'Naghten, partner at Nelson Mullins.

Arbitration analysis: In a decision given in July 2025, the High Court of Delhi (DHC) refused to interfere with an order passed by an arbitral tribunal under section 17 of the Indian Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (A&C Act) on the basis that the impugned order was well-reasoned and preserved the parties’ rights in an ongoing contract. In doing so, the DHC reiterated that an appellate court should exercise its powers under Section 37(2)(b) of the A&C Act sparingly and only when the order granting or refusing to grant interim relief under section 17 is ‘vitiated by perversity, arbitrariness or manifest illegality’. Accordingly, the DHC dismissed the appeal. Written by Juhi Gupta, counsel and Kevin Santhosh, associate at Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co.

This confidentiality agreement is for use at the outset of an asset purchase transaction proceeding by way of auction sale, when the bidder is conducting due diligence on the target’s affairs. Note that each bidder will be required to execute a confidentiality agreement on the same terms. This agreement is drafted on the basis that there is a single corporate seller and assumes that there will be a one-way flow of confidential information (and possibly personal data) from the seller to the bidder. This agreement includes: • covenants concerning non-solicitation of customers and employees of the seller/target, and • an indemnity from the bidder in the event of a breach of the confidentiality agreement A confidentiality agreement gives the seller a measure of realistic protection, given the restrictions it places on the bidder and the contractual remedies that it affords the seller in the event of breach. However, practical protections are also important and therefore the way in which the confidential information is disclosed will be important. Use of a data room (whether physical or virtual) will afford

What is clearing of derivatives? Clearing is a process which eliminates the normal risk that a party to a derivatives transaction will default (counterparty risk). The main parties involved in the clearing process are: • a financial institution known as a clearing house, and • other financial institutions, usually banks or brokers, which enter into a clearing agreement with the clearing house—these institutions are known as clearing members of the clearing house or simply clearing firms In cleared transactions: • all transactions are entered into by clearing members, which may do this for their own accounts or for the accounts of their clients, and • the clearing house interposes itself between the clearing members who have entered into the transaction, becoming a party to every transaction—each party therefore is exposed to the risk of the clearing house but not to the risk of the other party Clearing members do not need to be concerned with the identity or credit quality of their clearing member counterparties, but only with the credit quality

This confidentiality agreement is for use at the outset of a share purchase transaction proceeding by way of auction sale, when the bidder is conducting due diligence on the target’s affairs. Note that each bidder will be required to execute a confidentiality agreement on the same terms. This agreement is drafted on the basis that there is a single corporate seller and assumes that there will be a one-way flow of confidential information (and possibly personal data) from the seller to the bidder. This agreement includes: • covenants concerning non-solicitation of customers and employees of the seller/target, and • an indemnity from the bidder in the event of a breach of the confidentiality agreement A confidentiality agreement gives the seller a measure of realistic protection, given the restrictions it places on the bidder and the contractual remedies that it affords the seller in the event of breach. However, practical protections are also important and therefore the way in which the confidential information is disclosed will be important. Use of a data room (whether physical or virtual)

This week's edition of Local Government weekly highlights includes the latest developments on local government reorganisation, including Essex County Council’s expected challenge to the Greater Essex reorganisation proposals and a draft Order laid to amend the date from which linked disposal and contract values are taken into account for control directions. Case analysis includes Re X and Y (Children: Adoption Order: Setting Aside), in which the Supreme Court confirmed the approach to the revocation of adoption orders and Spiropoulos v LGSCO, in which the court found that an alternative statutory remedy does not bar the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction where outside of the court’s remit. Case reports include AA v Waltham Forest LBC, in which the Court of Appeal held that social housing allocation steps fall outside the scope of personal housing plans. It also includes further updates on Local government reorganisation, Children’s social care, Social housing, Adult social care, Education, Governance, Local government finance, Local authority prosecutions, Licensing, Planning and Healthcare.

Information Law analysis: The Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 (VPA 2024), section 17 comes into effect on 1 October 2025. The provision codifies common law protections for the reporting of crime to the police and whistleblowing in relation to criminal activity. It also expands the liberty of victims of crime to make certain further disclosures without risk of enforcement of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). The scope of permitted disclosures includes those made for the purposes of seeking legal advice, co-operating with regulatory investigations and seeking support from certain persons in relation to the relevant conduct, which include, among others, victim support services, and the close family of the person making the disclosure. From 1 October 2025, contract terms seeking to prevent the making of such disclosures will be void and unenforceable. Written by Gaelyn Fuhrmann, solicitor at Wiggin.

Arbitration analysis: The Chambéry Court of Appeal confirmed that a broad ICC arbitration clause deprived the French commercial court of jurisdiction over tort claims which, although framed as extra-contractual, were in substance inseparable from the parties’ contractual relationship. The court reaffirmed the principle of compétence-compétence under the French Code of Civil Procedure and emphasised the expansive interpretation given to arbitration agreements, extending to related tort claims, post-contract disputes and, in appropriate cases, non-signatories. It also held that, even if certain allegations arguably fell outside the arbitration agreement, the Commercial Court of Chambéry lacked territorial jurisdiction under the Lugano Convention. The respondents’ cross-claim for damages for abusive proceedings was dismissed.

The International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) has announced that the FIDIC Carbon Management Guide will be launched at the Official FIDIC International Contract Users' Conference in London, taking place from 1–4 December 2025. The guide provides information on integrating carbon management into FIDIC contracts and was previewed during a webinar on 30 October 2025. It aims to support the adoption of carbon management practices across global infrastructure projects and complements the FIDIC Climate Change Charter, launched in 2021. The Chief Legal and Contracts Officer at FIDIC, Daduna Kokhreidze, stated that the guide represents an evolution in construction contracts by making sustainability a contractual priority and provides a structured framework for contractors to align their work with the global sustainable transition.

The Scottish government has published guidance on rental discrimination provisions under the Renters' Rights Act 2025, which will take effect from 1 May 2026. The guidance specifies that landlords, letting agents and their agents will be prohibited from treating tenants unfairly because they have children or receive benefits, regardless of the type of private tenancy in Scotland. Under the new rules, any mortgage terms that attempt to prevent tenants with children or benefit recipients from renting property will be rendered invalid. In addition, insurance contracts containing discriminatory provisions will only remain valid if they were in place before 1 May 2026, renewed or new contract cannot be used to refuse housing to such tenants.