508 F.2d 969; December 23, 1974
FACTS:
In 1962, Parsons & Whittemore Overseas Co., Inc., (Overseas) entered into a construction agreement with Societe Generale de L’Industrie du Papier (RAKTA), to construct, and manage and supervise for 1 year a paperboard mill in Alexandria, Egypt. The Agency for International Development (AID), a branch of the United States State Department, would finance the project by supplying RAKTA with funds with which to purchase letters of credit in Overseas favor.
Among the contract’s terms was an arbitration clause, which provided a means to settle differences arising in the course of performance, and a “force majeure” clause, which excused delay in performance due to causes beyond Overseas’ reasonable capacity to control.