The NEWS (Monrovia)
Jimmey C. Fahngon
20 November 2008
Monrovia — The Bid Evaluation Panel of the Government of Liberia yesterday opened what it called "Envelope B" for companies interested in mining the Bong Range iron ore deposit in Bong County.
According to Deputy Lands, Mines and Energy Minister for Operation, E.C.B. Jones, Jr. who is Chairman of the Evaluation Panel, four companies submitted bids for the Bong Range, but one of them, Belle Resources, did not meet the requirement, and consequently, disqualified.
The three companies' bids opened yesterday were China Union, Vedanta and BSGR limited.
China Union in its bid promised to pay US$40 million upfront; Vedanta also promised to pay US$36 million upfront, while BSGR says it would pay US$20 million upfront.
Deputy Minister Jones said despite China Union being the highest bidder, there is no winner for the Bong Range yet, adding "the Inter-Ministerial Committee would decide the winner."
He said the Evaluation Panel consisting of nine ministries would submit its report to the Inter-Ministerial Committee which has the responsibility to select the winner and pass same to the President for announcement.
For his part, the Minister of Lands, Mines and Energy, Eugene Shannon told reporters that the Inter-Ministerial Committee would meet early next week to decide which company wins the bid.
He acknowledged that the exploration of the Bong Range iron ore deposit would greatly help government in its implementation of the Poverty Reduction Strategy especially by creating jobs and improving the lives of Liberians.
According to him, the winner of the bid would, on a yearly basis, make certain funds available for the development of Bong, Margibi and Montserrado Counties.
He added that the upfront money that would be paid by the bid winner would help government address the four pillars of the PRS.
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I challenge the Government of Liberia and Madam President herself: Prove me wrong in claiming that external influence has played a role in the Western Cluster Iron Ore concession, resulting in the disqualification of two of the original bidders from the re-bidding process. This "external influence" was exerted by an American firm, currently involved in major investments in the country. Should this American company be the eventual winner of the Western Cluster Iron Ore concession, may that be proof that in fact this company, and perhaps not those previously involved in bidding (two of which were disqualified… [Read Full Text]
I challenge the Govenment of Liberia to prove me wrong: An American company, currently involved in investments in Liberia will ultimately be awarded the Western Cluster. Talk about "external influence" and "impropriety"...? I trust the media will pick up on this, and question the Government on this process. People of Liberia, watch this space, and you will see where the millions of dollars destined for your upliftment is ending up - in the pockets of a few select so-called leaders...
It seems to me that the writing,mikohansen, has a lot of information that needs to be exploited for the benefit of the public good. I can only hope that the Liberian Press is reading his article and digging to the bottom of the story. My tip to you is that you start with the writer -- mikohansen himself. I look forward to reading more about this in the next couple of days.
Liberia needs a brand new bread of leaders with vision and concern for the entire citizenry.
You can not put "old wine" into "new wineskin" and expect for everything to go well. Also unwise to put new wine into old wineskin.
We need to change those recycled so-called leaders. They are worthless and it is a shame. They will be most useful in a hard labor prison camp."Those American- educated petty thieves."
For all the many years leading to the Liberian civil crisis, our governments operated under imperial leadership and almost like a secret society. Information regarding governance was held from the public. In the 1970s and 80s, when I worked in government, I never recalled this level of transparency of information. Never did the governments at those times provide details into cntracts and public financial management. A holistic approach to allievating poverty was never front and center of government agenda. Hundreds of no-bid contracts were awarded to friends and foreign investors and the public never got to question or even hear… [Read Full Text]
I believe the re-bidding process for the Western Cluster will soon be announced, allowing ALL previous bidders to participate, including the two previously "disqualified" entities, namely Delta Minding Consolidated and Tata. Does that not in itself exonerate these two companies from so-called "impropriety" and "external influence"? Why then call for re-bidding at all, if the re-bidding was justified for those reasons? Surely then the Government of Liberia should proceed with negotiations with the existing parties? This appears to be a smoke screen to avoid legal action against the Government for unproven allegations and slander. I… [Read Full Text]
One has to question the process of bidding for these lucrative concessions. Information obtained over a year ago indicated that a Chinese firm would win the Bong Mines bid. Watch this space - I'm prepared to bet a lot of money on China Union being the eventual winner, no matter what the contents of the bidding documents or findings of a due diligence process. Transparancy, due process, bla bla bla, total rubbish!!! And the outcome of the Western Cluster concession? How come the Government has been so conspicuous in its silence regarding this debacle? … [Read Full Text]