In a move that may deprive businesses and investors of the most important international venue for securing compensation for expropriated property, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez said Sunday that he “will not recognize” decisions issued by the World Bank’s International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). The announcement bodes ill for Exxon Mobil, Helmerich & Payne and many other companies that have seen their Venezuelan assets seized by the Chávez government.

“We have to get out of that ICSID. And I’ll go ahead and say it: We won’t recognize any of ICSID’s decisions,” Chávez said in a television address.

Disavowing ICSID’s authority will be difficult, as multiple treaties that bind Venezuela to the court remain in force. Experts have also suggested that rejecting the body’s rulings could hurt Venezuela’s ability to obtain credit as well as prompt companies to freeze Venezuela’s foreign assets. Nonetheless, a defiant Chávez said he will not recognize the panel’s rulings and may withdraw Venezuela from the forum altogether.

In his announcement, Chávez referred to a $900 million award that Exxon Mobil recently won in another arbitration case before the International Chamber of Commerce. ExxonMobil is one of more than a dozen companies seeking compensation from Venezuela before the ICSID, which is considered the world’s preeminent forum for settling disputes between investors and sovereign states. The Caracas-based consulting firm Ecoanalítica estimates that the Chávez government has nationalized more than $33.7 billion in assets from private companies.

Chávez’s announcement suggests that companies seeking compensation from Venezuela have a difficult road ahead, including U.S. firms like Oklahoma’s Helmerich & Payne and Ohio-based bottle maker Owens Illinois, which have filed legal claims against Venezuela.

Chávez, who often offers nationalized companies little to no compensation, has ramped up expropriations over the past years. There are currently 17 pending cases against Venezuela before ICSID. If the government follows through with Chávez’s plan, all 17 may turn into protracted disputes that further blunt foreign investments in Venezuela and alienate the country from the international community.