From Pasboz on HC
90 DAYS are nearly up
Thanks to Terryl
Lithium from Manono, the DRC escapes a scam in Paris
The COMINIERE trial against MMCS STRATEGIC 1 opened on Monday January 16, 2023 at the International Chamber of Arbitration in Paris is decisive for the DRC. On Tuesday, the second hearing was decisive for the Congolese side, defended by lawyers from Cabinet Élite. The most solid and unassailable technical arguments presage the victory of the DRC, but extreme caution is necessary. A verdict in favor of COMINIERE will make the exploitation of Manono lithium by AVZ a reality.
By
COMINIERE delegation to the trial in Paris @Photo Third-party rights
published on January 20, 2023 at 07:00:00
The ICC had notified COMINIERE since June 2022 that the pleading would take place from January 16 to 20, 2023 in Paris. Complainant MMCS fully agreed. But, the attention of the Congolese authorities being more focused on the aggression suffered by the country of its Rwandan and Ugandan neighbors, MMCS wanted to take advantage of the probable absence of the DRC at the trial to raise the stakes. In the absence of COMINIERE, the DRC should have been condemned by default because of negligence like the past. In such a case, the Mauritian company would claim damages. For which investment in Congo? Is taken, who thought he was taking, they say. MMCS was unpleasantly surprised by the arrival in Paris of the Congolese delegation.
Fallacious arguments to block the AVZ project
Litigation has two components: legal and technical. The last part better explains the failures of MMCS. The argument that MMCS did not research and do a feasibility study is archaic.
Read also:
Electric batteries: the memorandum of understanding signed by the USA, the DRC and Zambia published by the Biden administration
According to our sources, the mining engineer, Raphaël Ngoy Mushila, a mining and quarrying agent with 36 years' experience in the sector, has made a major contribution to the defense of the DRC. Recruited by Cabinet Élite to provide technical advice, the expert enriched the debate. Having worked in Canada, Australia, Latin America and Africa in the mines, he demonstrated black and white that the argument of the energy deficit invoked by MMCS was
"Quackery and mining heresy"
The company required, in fact, 15 megawatts from COMINIERE before carrying out any research and carrying out a feasibility study. According to expert Ngoy,
"MMCS didn't even need an amp or a watt. Not even a candle". Such a claim is similar to a concession freeze prohibited by the mining code. The mining law also provides for the forfeiture of titles when the operator has not developed the project within the legal period. This gave arguments to the government of the time to strip MMCS of its titles.
From trial to settlement, a strategy or a failure?
From Paris, we learn that MMCS
"begged"the Court to suspend the pleadings to grant the parties two months for an amicable settlement. A request that reflects the weakness of MMCS at trial. But COMINIERE has understood that this elastic strategy aims to block the evolution of the lithium exploitation project, because the arbitration has been going on for 5 years. The elasticity of gait would allow MMCS to bounce back otherwise.
In pleading, the Court must rule within 90 days. This is how COMINIERE opted for the pleadings.
This timing gives MMCS the opportunity to negotiate before the verdict and requires it to act urgently. Because, by dragging the pace, the sentence will fall before the desired compromise. However, the adage
"better a bad settlement than a good trial" remains valid for all parties.
Awaiting sentencing...
The window of 3 to 90 days is important for the negotiations that MMCS is now forced to conduct with its back to the wall. It is therefore necessary to update the stakes of this project with a feasibility study taking into account the prices of lithium. It is urgent to reassess the contribution of each party to the project to relaunch the construction phase. It is logical to involve the Élite firm in this file to avoid the recurring and fatal error of parachuting UFOs, wheeler-dealers and hustlers. The Congo has no room for error!
With anticipations before November 2023, President Tshisekedi can end his first five-year term with the production of lithium and rare earths, essential for technological innovation. The launch of the Lithium-Tantalum-Tungsten-Tin and Rare Earth plant will be a success. The project will be profitable. Natural resource diplomacy can be played out at this level, because all the powers of the world need the lithium, tin ores and rare earths that the DRC has.
Vigilance and extreme caution for COMINIERE
The MMCS party tried to save the furniture by lining up 4 witnesses. But their performance in the face of questions from the Court showed that MMCS had never done
"Due diligence" when entering into a joint venture. No credible miner can skip this step. It makes it possible to identify all the risks and binding tasks, including those that are non-negotiable and that lead to the forfeiture of securities.
Cut suspicious connections and networks
MMCS has not given up yet. A reliable source indicates that one of the witnesses, chosen by MMCS is an agent in mines. Son of a former Attorney General of the Republic, he is also president of a bar. Curiously, he is both judge and party. He was one of the managers of the
"stillborn JV, Manono Mineral (MANOMINE)" between COMINIERE and MMCS. He represents the interests of MMCS. Therefore, he has a conflict of interest. Another reliable source, based in Kinshasa, is said to have intercepted bizarre contacts and calls between an MMCS insider and the Ministries of Justice, Mines and Portfolio since the start of the trial this week. A simple coincidence or a suspicious movement tending to influence the game against the DRC? He's under the radar.
The managing director of MMMCS admitted that she has never drawn up a business plan, a compass for any serious mining operator. It is clear that his mode of management was visual navigation without any landmarks. This project was going nowhere.
A copy-paste that does not hold
The calculation of the damage allegedly suffered by MMCS was based on data taken from the AVZ feasibility study. Plagiarism or copy-pasting vigorously contested by COMINIERE during the trial. Study data are never transposable. Moreover, we are not far from forgery and the use of forgery. Even two bidders on the same mining project will never have the same process, the same recovery yield, the same operating costs, the same capex and the same impurities in the finished product. MMCS was unable to produce a feasibility study.
Extreme caution for the DRC and not blissful optimism
The last hearing took place on Wednesday. Between now and mid-April, a series of activities will take place: the circulation of the transcripts of the pleadings, the transmission of the post-pleading briefs and any replies.
Read also:
Seabed: Assembly calls for international moratorium on mining
It is strongly recommended that COMINIERE be cautious with regard to the
"full-contact" that has just taken place. It is certain that MMCS will seek a solution before the sentence. But this stage must be meticulously prepared on the Congolese side by resource persons who master this file. Cabinet Élite has proven that it can do the job well. The government must avoid unnecessarily inflating the team with per diem hunters, careerists, profiteers and calculators as is often the case in Congo.
