Dispute Concerning Delimitation of the Maritime Boundary between Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire in the Atlantic Ocean

Abstract

376International tribunals — Special Chamber of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea — United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 — Constitution of the Special Chamber — Transfer of proceedings from an Annex VII arbitral tribunal to the Special ChamberInternational tribunals — Provisional measures — Preservation of rights of Parties — Protection of marine environment — Protection of confidentiality of information relating to exploration and exploitation of natural resources of continental shelf — Prima facie jurisdiction — Agreement that Special Chamber having prima facie jurisdiction — Plausibility of rights — Côte d’Ivoire’s claimed rights being plausibly based on United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 — Whether Ghana’s activities in disputed area could cause irreparable prejudice to rights of Côte d’Ivoire — Problems of prescribing suspension of all oil exploration and exploitation — Possibility for compensation of financially assessable damage — Report on compliance with provisional measures — Power of President of Special Chamber to request further information concerning complianceInternational tribunals — Jurisdiction — Special agreement — Admissibility of request for delimitation of continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles — Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf — Forum prorogatum — International responsibility — Whether ITLOS having jurisdiction to decide on international responsibility of a State in accordance with UNCLOSTreaties — Tacit agreement — Oil practice — Maps — Seismic surveys — Drilling activities — National legislation — Representations to international organizations — Bilateral exchanges and negotiations — Standard of proof — Whether Côte d’Ivoire estopped from objecting to customary equidistance boundary claimed by GhanaSea — Maritime boundary delimitation — Single maritime boundary — Territorial sea — Exclusive Economic Zone — Continental shelf — Continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles — United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 — Article 15 — Articles 74 and 83 — Equidistance/relevant circumstances — Angle bisector — Whether location of base points justified using a methodology other than equidistance/relevant circumstances — Whether coastal 377instability justified using a methodology other than equidistance/relevant circumstances — Whether same methodology applied to delimitation of all maritime zones — Relevant coast — Relevant area — Provisional equidistance line — Appropriate base points — Relevant circumstances — Concavity of coast — Cut-off effect — Location of natural resources — Conduct — Methodology for delimiting the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles — Entitlement to a continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles — Disproportionality testState responsibility — Alleged responsibility for violation of sovereign rights — Alleged responsibility for violation of Article 83(1) of United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 — Whether Ghana’s oil activities violating its obligations under Article 83(3) — Alleged responsibility for violating order on provisional measures of 25 April 2015General principles of international law — Estoppel — Whether part of international law — Conditions — Clear and unequivocal statement — Reliance to detriment — Maritime boundaries — Whether capable of being established by estoppel