NEWSECONOMY
Manono Lithium: Cacophony of the Cominiere and silence of the government around the rehabilitation of the hydroelectric power stations of Mpyana Mwanga l and II
November 22, 2022
Kiki Kienge
By Kiki Kienge
This confusion created around the rehabilitation of the hydroelectric power stations of Mpyana Mwanga I and II, risks further delaying the start of luthium production in Manono in the province of Tanganyka.
Currently, the start of lithium mining has not yet started following the blocking by the CAMI (Cadastre Minier) and its director, Félix Mupande, of the mining permit already granted by the Ministry of Mines to AVZ Minerals.
Remember that this delay Today causes the Australian company, AVZ Minerals, to lose more than US$1 million per day and the Congolese State to lose more than US$300,000.
Rehabilitation of power plants by AVZ POWER SAU
On January 13, 2020, the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo through the Ministry of Water Resources and Electricity, to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with AVZ POWER SAU to rehabilitate the Mpyana Mwanga I and II hydroelectric power stations.
The rehabilitation of the hydroelectric power stations of Mpyana Mwanga I and II, must be used to supply electrical energy to the AVZ Minerals lithium exploitation plant, to public and private schools, to hospitals and to the installation of the Eata Congolese .
From September 15, 2020, a delegation of technical agents went down to Manono for a technical and environmental assessment of the Piana Mwanga I and II power plants, under reference RHE/4/SG/0/1322/G9/ALS/2020, it was composed companies ;
Congo Energy SA, Blue Phoenix, Stucky, CREC 8, International Montage Maintenance SA, Zest Weg Group, Groupe Muama Business SARL, WD Power, Power Line, Africa Services DRC SARL, TBEA Hengyan Transformer Co. Ltd and Tramico SARL .
On October 30, 2020, the expert mission sent its report to the Minister of Water Resources and Electricity.
On January 29, 2021, the Minister of Water Resources and Electricity signed a Ministerial Order establishing a technical monitoring committee for the rehabilitation project of the Mpiana-Mwanga I and II hydroelectric power stations with reference to No. 129/CAB/MIN/RHE/EMM/2021.
On the same day, January 29, the Minister signed another Ministerial Order No.130/CAB/MIN/RHE/EMM/2021 appointing the members of the Monitoring Committee for the rehabilitation project of the Mpiana-Mwanga I and II hydroelectric power plants by AVZ POWER SASU.
As a reminder, in this monitoring committee sits a representative or delegate of Cominière SA, a Congolese State company, which therefore represents the government in the rehabilitation of the Mpiana-Mwanga I and II hydroelectric power stations.
Why is COMINIERE withdrawing?
In September of this year, COMINIERE SE launched a call for tenders on the grounds that the hydroelectric power stations of Mpiana-Mwanga I and II were abandoned. When it had already signed with AVZ POWER SAU a rehabilitation agreement approved even by the Minister of Water Resources and Electricity.
We are talking about the Chinese group, Zijin, which would have won the tender for the rehabilitation of the hydroelectric power station of Mpiana-Mwanga I and II. This same group which claims to have bought 15% of the shares of Dathcom from COMINIERE, something which the presidency in the investigation of the IGF (General Inspectorate of Finances) had deemed fraudulent and almost null, because the Congolese State had lost million US$ in this Deal between the Chinese of Zijing and COMINIERE.
But here are civil society organizations and platforms in the DR Congo monitoring human rights and the country's natural resource sector, calling on the Head of State Félix Tshisekedi and the government of the manipulations of COMINIERE and the silence of the Ministers of Portfolio, Mines and Hydraulic Resources and Electricity who will cause the Congolese State to lose millions more US$ and delay the exploitation of lithium in Manono as long awaited by the local population:
"Our organizations remind your Excellency that the Government of the Republic has signed a memorandum of understanding with AVZ POWER SAU, signed by your Ministry on January 13, 2020, to rehabilitate the power plants concerned in compliance with the laws of the country and international standards. in the sector in order to supply energy to Dathcom Mining SA for its mining operations as well as to public and private schools and hospitals (health centres) in Manono and its surroundings, not to mention a quantity to be used by the State for electrification of the city of Manono and Mpiana-Mwanga.
This vision of things is part of the development policy of His Excellency Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo, President of the Republic and Head of State, to electrify our villages and towns through public-private partnerships.
La Cominière SA has a representative who sits on the Technical Committee for Monitoring the execution of the said memorandum of understanding.
»For our signatory Citizen Organizations, signed by Franck Fwamba.