Oil Basins Ltd v. Esso Australia Resources Pty Ltd (ACN 091 829 819) & Ors

Lower Court Judgment

09/02/2026 Supreme Court of Victoria (Court of Appeal) (McLeish, Lyons and Kenny JJA)

[2026] VSCA 6 

Catchwords

Commercial Arbitration – jurisdiction of arbitral tribunal – Appellant entitled to royalty in respect of gross value of hydrocarbons produced and recovered within designated area – disputes as to amount of royalty payable resulted in settlement agreement providing methodology for calculation of royalty amount – Further dispute arising concerning calculation of royalty amount – Appellant instituted proceeding in Supreme Court  seeking declaration that dispute not capable of arbitration – Judge granted stay sought by respondents on basis that issues as to scope of arbitration agreement a matter within jurisdiction of arbitral tribunal – appeal to Court of Appeal dismissed – whether open to the primary judge to grant a stay under s 7(2) of International Arbitration Act 1974 (Cth) (IAA) without embarking on any construction of the parties’ arbitration agreement, under its applicable law – whether proper law of the parties’ arbitration agreement is the law of New York – whether dispute about scope of arbitration agreement capable of settlement by arbitration where parties have agreed such disputes to be determined by court – International Arbitration Act 1974 (Cth) s 7(2), sch 2 art 16 – UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration