20.1 Force Majeure Events

(a) Force Majeure Events are a limited category of events of exceptional severity which are outside the control of either party, namely (subject to any necessary project specific variations):

(i) lightning, cyclones, earthquakes, natural disasters, landslides, tsunamis and mudslides;

(ii) civil riots, rebellions, revolutions, terrorism, insurrections and military and usurped power, act of sabotage, act of public enemy and war (declared or undeclared);

(iii) ionising radiation, contamination by radioactivity, nuclear, chemical or biological contamination unless caused by the private party or sub-contractors (excluding the risk of pollution and contamination allocated to the private party in accordance with Chapter 4 (Environmental issues and Site Conditions)); and

(iv) fire, flood or explosion caused by events referred to in paragraphs 20.1(a)(i) or 20.1(a)(ii) above.

(b) In the case of paragraph 20.1(a) above, jurisdictions have the flexibility of adopting or not adopting some or all of the Force Majeure Events listed or adopting further Force Majeure Events. However, Force Majeure Events should strictly be limited to those events that are catastrophic in nature.71 Additional events to those listed should only be adopted where this is warranted by the unique features of the project.

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71 The definition of Force Majeure Events should only include events which are likely to have a catastrophic effect on either party's (although usually the private party's) ability to fulfil its obligations under the Project Contracts and which neither party can prevent or where neither party is in a better position to manage the consequences of the event occurring. In practice, such events are highly unlikely to occur and this should be reflected in the drafting of Force Majeure Events.