Legal battle delays Lom Pangar dam construction

A legal battle between two partners of Cotco has jeopardised the scheduled delivery date for the Chad- Cameroon pipeline on the Lom Pangar dam construction site.

The Presidency of the Republic and the American and Italian embassies are currently trying to work out issues surrounding the compromised date, which strongly depends on the outcome of judicial procedures that engages key stakeholders despite it being scheduled for several weeks.

The residence rights of employees brought in to complete the masterpiece expires on July 5 sparking uncertainty about what will happen when they have to leave and work has still not been completed.

The Embassy of the United States and that of Italy are working to find a way out of this epilogue controversy over keeping deadlines for the delivery of these projects considered "major" by the Cameroonian government.

The court proceedings at the centre of this upheaval are focused on the debt of 607 million CFA francs owed by Sicim Spa Branch, the Italian business partner of Cotco in charge of Lom Pangar operations.

Tinted battle bravado has been apparent for some time regarding the controversial route of the Chad-Cameroon pipeline, initially pitted by the Cameroon Oil Transportation Company (COTCO) and two of its contractors (Sicim Spa and 3N), which now involves the Cameroonian government.

The significant sum of money in this case has led the President of the Republic to require "some" diligence in the proceedings to resolve the issue on which the smooth running of the Chad-Cameroon Pipeline project depends.

The General Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Department of Justice, the Embassy of the United States and Italy and the hierarchy of Homeland Security, have sought General Delegation of National Security (DGNS) to shed light on this melodrama.

Convened by the division of the judicial police DGNS, in the Eastern Region, the Italian company at the centre of the controversy has also been submitted to the meeting. Although the current Director General of Sicim, Paolo Tenani, is very relevant in this matter, correspondence dated 17 June, obtained by The Herald, Tenani attempts to justify his absence as well as other suspected personal.

The Sicim boss says "it is unfortunately not possible for Mr Giulio Carminato (site manager) and myself to be present at your notice of June 19, given the time allotted to us for the delivery of a report to the Cameroonian authorities within the framework of the meeting referred to above.

Sources close to the legal services DGNS also indicate the absence of Cotco executives summoned to the meeting causing the president of Cameroon to seek a quick resolution of this matter.