Windhoek — Kraatz Marine has terminated the agreement it has signed with Max Planck Institute (MPI) to build and erect the largest telescope in Namibia called HESS. Kraatz Marine is part of the Ohlthaver and List Group of Companies, saying MPI has breached the contract.

In December 2005, Kraatz Marine was awarded a contract to build and erect the largest telescope of the Cherenkov Type, by the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics in Heidelberg Germany. The project time line was set for 2 years, starting in January 2006 and the value was EUR 3.183 million.

Kraatz Marine said this week that while it agrees that the original contract was set for 2 years, the allegation that the company is two years behind schedule is unfounded.

The company said the delays are as a result of incorrect initial design information by MPI.

"This has delayed the project by eight and a half months. Furthermore, the approval times as contractually agreed to by MPI were not adhered to resulting in further contract delays of approximately eight months resulting in a total delay of approximately 17 months," said Kraatz.

The company also said that as a result of incorrect and understated design information, the total weight of the structure has increased by 41% from 417 tons to 586 tons.

"This increase in weight impacted further on the overall project duration," it said.

Kraatz Marine said it is a reputable engineering company that has delivered successfully on a number of projects and said it has been treated unfairly by MPI which actions have negatively implicated the project and the reputation of Kraatz Marine.

Sven Thieme, executive chairman of the O&L Group of companies said: "Every attempt had been made to resolve the matter amicably and we were greatly disappointed to learn that MPI had resorted to disclose this information without joint approval. Since MPI has unilaterally retracted the contract, we have stopped all work on this project.

It should be noted that Kraatz had already incurred losses in excess of N$ 30 million on top of the original contracted value of EUR 3.183 million illustrating Kraatz's resolve to complete the project.

Thus this unilateral termination of the contract is regrettable as we were very committed to and excited about this project not only for Kraatz Marine but for Namibia as a whole." Kraatz Marine and O&L have appointed legal representation and reserve all rights, he said.