SEOUL: Abu Dhabi-based International Petroleum Investment Co. (IPIC), which sold its controlling stake in a South Korean refiner in 2010 for over $2 billion, has filed a request for arbitration, seeking compensation for a tax payment stemming from the sale, according to a South Korean official.

Two subsidiaries of IPIC sold their 70 percent stakes in Hyundai Oilbank in 2010, paying sales tax in South Korea, Park Jae-hyung, a director at the National Tax Service of South Korea told Reuters by phone. He declined to disclose the tax amount.

IPIC sold its controlling stake in the refiner to companies including Hyundai Heavy Industries.