CI-NEWS

Controvery over Control of Douala-Bonaberi Container Terminal: Gov’t suspends deal with Swiss Compan

2019-10-28

No: 453

Controvery over Control of Douala-Bonaberi Container Terminal: Gov’t suspends deal with Swiss Company as Macron’s envoy pleads Bollore’s case.

One of the spin-offs of last week’s visit of French foreign minister to Cameroon is the suspension of a much lucrative container terminal deal with a Swiss company Terminal Investment Limited (TIL), paving the way for French business group Bollore-APM, which recently lost control over the container terminal of the Douala Port Authority (PAD), to dream of a re-conquest.

The social media is awash with a leaked confidential document from the Minister of State, Secretary General at the Presidency, Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, asking the General Manager of the PAD to put activities of the Swiss company on hold until the court case with Bollore group is settled. This document appeared barely 24 hours (Thursday 24 October) after Jean-Yves Le Drian met with the Head of State in Yaounde.

The case Bollore filed against PAD comes after a memorandum of understanding between the two parties was supposedly breached by PAD.

It was after PAD announced on January 2018 that it needed a new concessionaire, that the group started the court case at the Douala Administrative Court. The group said it had a 15 years concession granted in 2005, which authorises the company to control the Douala International Terminal (DIT) till 2023.

According to the executive, this agreement was signed in late 2017, after six months of tough negotiations with an adhoc committee presided over by Cyrus Ngo’o, the current managing director of Douala autonomous port (PAD).

This memorandum of understanding was articulated around five axis; disbursement by Bolloré group, of a special contribution of XAF24 billion, an increase of the state’s shares in DIT from 10 to 30%, doubling the fees paid by DIT for the concession and an additional investment of XAF20 billion.

In return for these actions, the Cameroonian party was to extend the Bolloré group’s concession agreement by 4 years to let the group cover its investments. Bollore group was also not shortlisted at the January 2019 concession search launched by PAD.

Despite ongoing judicial proceedings, in September PAD got Switzerland’s Terminal Investment Limited into a deal to renovate and manage Cameroon’s main Douala port container terminal beginning January 2020, to the dismay of Bollore group.

Following these updates, many are of the opinion that the visit of French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs, Jean-Yves Le Drian , is partly to reconcile government to the French investor, Bollore group.

But observers say the suspension of the deal with TIL is just tactic by Biya to show that Cameroon’s justice system is free. If the courts rule against Bollore, it will be condemned to do battle with TIL which is also said to have a French connection. At that time it will be a question of who is offering a more lucrative deal for Cameroon.

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Controvery over Control of Douala-Bonaberi Container Terminal: Gov’t suspends deal with Swiss Compan