ExxonMobil and Shell, the owners of the Groningen gas field operator NAM, are arbitrating against the Dutch State at the Netherlands Arbitration Institute (NAI) over their 2018 Heads of Agreement. They argue that the State charges NAM earthquake damage and reinforcement costs the deal does not cover, and the State counterclaims over guarantees for NAM’s obligations. The tribunal has issued several interim awards, and the government expects no merits award before 2028.
Latest development Jul 10, 2026
On July 10, 2026, the NAI tribunal rejected the State’s request that Shell and ExxonMobil keep their unlimited guarantees for NAM’s obligations in place during the arbitration. It ordered the companies instead to post the limited guarantees they had offered, valid until June 1, 2031, at the latest. The State must pay €700,000 toward their legal costs and may seek further security if circumstances change.
Why it matters
The tribunal will decide how much of the Groningen damage and reinforcement bill the State may pass on to NAM. It will also decide what security Shell and ExxonMobil must keep for NAM’s obligations. The State has projected about €7.4B in levies on NAM for 2025 to 2031.
Background
Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij (NAM), a 50/50 joint venture of Shell and ExxonMobil, operated the Groningen gas field, where production caused earthquakes that damaged buildings. On June 25, 2018, the State, Shell, and ExxonMobil signed a Heads of Agreement (Akkoord op Hoofdlijnen). A public body took over damage claims and building reinforcement, and NAM pays the costs through statutory levies. Shell and ExxonMobil each gave an unlimited guarantee for half of NAM’s 60% share of those costs. They agreed that appropriate security would be provided for the period after the guarantees lapsed.
Production from the field was set at zero from October 1, 2023. On December 7, 2023, ExxonMobil and Shell started arbitration at the NAI, taking the position that their guarantees had lapsed on October 1, 2023. They argue that the State charges NAM for damage and reinforcement costs beyond NAM’s civil liability and the 2018 deal, including compensation paid without any inquiry into causation. They also say the State has not had the costs independently audited as the deal requires. The arbitration also covers the wind-down of production, the gas left in the field, and the Norg and Grijpskerk gas storage sites. The State filed its answer on February 5, 2026, with a jurisdictional defense and counterclaims, including a declaration that the guarantees remain in force.
The tribunal has issued several interim awards. On February 20, 2025, it partly granted the companies’ request for information and talks on an external audit of the costs. On November 14, 2025, it refused to stop the State from levying about €1.5B of 2024 costs, and the State imposed €1.35B in levies, which NAM paid. On February 23, 2026, it ordered Shell and ExxonMobil to have NAM give the State company EBN one year of access to the Norg gas storage site. On July 10, 2026, it rejected the State’s request for unlimited guarantees. It ordered the companies instead to post the limited guarantees they had offered, valid until June 1, 2031, at the latest.
By September 2026, document production had ended, and the State had handed over 125 anonymized damage files under the tribunal’s order. Shell and ExxonMobil are next to file a reply, followed by the State’s rejoinder. Related disputes continue in two NAI arbitrations between the State and NAM and in the Dutch administrative courts. Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) claims by Shell plc and an ExxonMobil affiliate are pending at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).
Timeline 9 events
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AwardTribunal orders Shell and ExxonMobil to post limited guarantees
The tribunal rejected the State’s request for unlimited guarantees and ordered the State to pay €700,000 in legal costs and the arbitrators’ fees for the request.
NAI 5174 award of July 10, 2026Government letter of September 14, 2026
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AwardTribunal orders one year of Norg storage access for EBN
Shell and ExxonMobil were ordered to have NAM give EBN access to the Norg site. EBN signed a services contract with NAM on March 28, 2026.
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FilingState files its answer with counterclaims on the guarantees
The State raised a jurisdictional defense and asked the tribunal to declare that the guarantees remain in force until appropriate security is provided.
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OrderTribunal accepts jurisdiction over the State’s gas storage request
The State had asked on December 8, 2025, for an interim order securing access to the Norg or Grijpskerk gas storage site.
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AwardTribunal refuses to halt the State’s levies on NAM for 2024
Shell and ExxonMobil had asked the tribunal to bar levies of about €1.5B until the costs were audited. The State then imposed €1.35B in levies, which NAM paid on December 30, 2025.
NAI 5174 award of November 14, 2025Tweede Kamer 33 529, no. 1369
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FilingShell and ExxonMobil file their statement of claim
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AwardTribunal partly grants the companies’ request on cost audits
The interim award concerned further information and talks on the external audit of damage and reinforcement costs and on reporting by the Groningen Mining Damage Institute.
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FilingExxonMobil and Shell start NAI arbitration against the State
The companies took the position that their guarantees for NAM’s obligations had lapsed on October 1, 2023, when production was set at zero.
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OtherState, Shell, and ExxonMobil sign the Groningen Heads of Agreement
The deal moved damage handling and reinforcement to a public body funded by levies on NAM and required guarantees from Shell and ExxonMobil.