Reinstate PDS – MCC to government

It has emerged that the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) asked the Ghana government, through the Finance Minister, to reinstate PDS to their original position as managers of Ghana’s power sector before the contract was terminated by Ghana.

A letter from MCC to the finance minister sighted by Starr News said the reinstatement of PDS is a condition under which Ghana can attract the remaining 190 million dollars of the compact money meant to enhance the operations and distribution of power in the country.

“Formerly announce the reinstatement of the PDS’ concession rights under the transaction agreement,” it said.

The letter was received by the government before the finance minister announced the decision to terminate the PDS deal on Saturday.

The Government of Ghana has announced that it can no longer continue with the concession arrangement with PDS.

“On the strength of all the information gathered about the purported Demand Guarantees provided by PDS as security for the transfer, the Government of Ghana is of the firm opinion that there is no valid Payment Security. Al Koot has clearly denounced and repudiated the instruments and expressed a clear intention not to be bound by any present or future obligation arising out of same. It is quite apparent that the alleged signatory of the purported Demand Guarantees, Yahaya Al Nouri, was not duly authorised by Al Koot to execute same according to the company’s Delegation of Authority instrument. The product was also not one of the company’s product lines.

“It would be illusory for Ghana or any of the parties to the LAA and BSA to consider that a valid and enforceable Payment Security was furnished by PDS in fulfillment of an essential Condition Precedent for the Transfer to PDS. In direct response to an observation in the FTI Final Report about the possibility of Ghana prevailing in a lawsuit against Al Koot, we say that the people of Ghana would consider it highly irresponsible on the part of government to act on the remote possibility that a Qatari court may find that there was a valid guarantee in place when Al Koot has unequivocally repudiated same as not its act. In any event, the Demand Guarantees are governed by the laws of Ghana, and not Qatar. Further, Qatar does not subscribe to Common Law for the doctrine of judicial precedent to be applicable,” a government statement said.