The World Bank's dispute body has ruled that O-I can pursue enforcement of an earlier arbitration $485m award against the country of Venezuela, which seized ownership of two of O-I's bottle making plants in the South American country in October 2010. The award includes interest since the illegal seizures by President Hugo Chavez, who died in 2013. The case still could be affected by Venezuela's request to the World Bank's International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes that the award be nullified. O-I said it would take vigorous steps to collect the award, which is enforceable in about 150 member states subject to the International Centre's jurisdiction. However, even with the committee's latest ruling, O-I said collecting the payment will be difficult and it cannot predict how much money it might receive, or when.
