NERA client South Sudan “declared victory” after the ICC awarded claimant Vivacel less than 3% of its original claims in a lost revenues and interest telecoms dispute.  

The claimant sought approximately $2.9 billion in lost revenues and interest following changes to licensing conditions imposed by a telecommunications regulator. A key issue was how mobile phone usage would have responded to increased price levels, with Vivacel asserting it could have maintained sizable sales even at higher prices. 

A team from NERA played a key role in the claim on behalf of South Sudan, delivering testimony, economic analysis, and modeling that directly addressed Vivacel’s core damages assumptions. Professor Marc Ivaldi provided expert economic testimony, supported by a NERA team including Senior Managing Director Grant Saggers, Consultant Rafael Sambeat, and Economic Analyst Alisa Smaghina, working alongside an international legal team from Fieldfisher LLP, GAK Law, Essex Court, and Quadrant Chambers, with forensic accounting support from Grant Thornton. Our expert testimony demonstrated Vivacel’s assumption it could have maintained sizable sales relied on incorrect estimates of price elasticity. Sophisticated economic modeling and econometric analysis also showed the claimant’s damage calculations overstated expected consumer behavior and market dynamics.

The ICC tribunal ultimately awarded the claimant less than 3% of its original claim.