Measures executed by DR. 3.2.1. The rental agreement between Stáltak and DR concerning DR’s assets As described in Section I-2.5.2 above, on 29 October 2000, Stáltak and DR concluded a rental agreement (56) according to which Stáltak’s lease contract on the use of DR’s equipment would be valid for two years from that date (57). The complainant has made the point that no amendments were made to the rental terms to make allowance for investments made by DR in a new slipway F in 2000. More specifically, the complainant claims that DR bought additional equipment valued at ISK 93 million in 2000, which had the effect that the equipment Stáltak had on lease from DR nearly doubled in value while the rent stayed unchanged. According to the complainant, this investment was primarily financed by credit made available by the Port. The complainant has moreover insisted that Stáltak paid the rent almost entirely in the form of maintenance work on the leased equipment. The complainant has specifically pointed out that the monthly rental price should have been closer to ISK 1,8 million or ISK 2,2 million per month instead of the around ISK 600 000 charged (58). This is based on an analysis from an auditing firm, referring to prevailing rent rates for comparable premises and standard return on profits (59). The Icelandic authorities have rejected the claim that the rental price was too low. The authorities have described the value of the leased equipment and state that the rental prerequisites did not change during the period in question; no additional equipment or repairs changed the rental basis (60). Moreover the Icelandic authorities insist that the market investor principle was respected when the rental price was determined. As regards the rental agreement’s provision on operational and management costs, the Icelandic authorities have pointed out that as a general rule, the lessor is responsible for the quality of leased equipment and that only in exceptional circumstances may the lessor have the lessee covering costs relating to maintenance. In circumstances where the lessee has the capacity and knowledge to take care of maintenance and repair, it is common to negotiate on the lessee taking care of the maintenance work considered necessary by the lessor, as that would generally be the most efficient and economic solution. This approach may for instance prevent consequences of default and costs caused by delays in maintenance work (61).
