Chinese company claims US$55m from Ghana for cancellation of traffic management contract

A Chinese-based construction company, Beijing Everyway Traffic and Lighting Tech Co Ltd is claiming USD55 million from Ghana for cancelling a contract it awarded it to develop an intelligent traffic management system for the country.

The Chinese-based company is also claiming the amount following the award of the same contract to another Chinese-based company by Ghana.

The notice of arbitration was served on the Ghana government under the China-Ghana bilateral investment treaty on Wednesday, 10 February 2021.

The Chinese-based company is being represented by Zhong Lun Law Firm in Beijing.

The lawyers are of the opinion that the claim against Ghana is the first against an African country by a mainland Chinese Investor.

China is one of the leading foreign direct investors in Africa.

Chinese foreign direct investment in Africa soared from USD75 Million in the year 2008 to USD2.7 billion in the year 2019.