The Democratic Republic of Congo has recovered the mining and oil assets worth about $2 billion that was being controlled by Israeli investor Dan Gertler.
The recovery follows a commission that was set up for negotiations. Concluded terms of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) enabled the government to recover a substantial part of royalties from Kamoto Copper Company that were ceded to the group.
The U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on Gertler and more than 30 of his businesses in December 2017 and June 2018, accusing him of leveraging his friendship with former Congo President Joseph Kabila to secure lucrative mining deals.
Losses
Anti-corruption group, Congo is Not for Sale (CNPAV), had previously warned the mineral-rich country could lose out on $1.76 billion in potential royalty payments from copper and cobalt mining deals with Gertler’s Group st.
The U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on Gertler and more than 30 of his businesses in December 2017 and June 2018, accusing him of leveraging his friendship with former Congo President Joseph Kabila to secure lucrative mining deals.
In its report, CNPAV accused Gertler of acquiring mining and oil licenses at “knockdown prices before selling them on to international partners, or even back to the government, for incredible profits.”
“For years we have been screaming loud and clear that Congo has already lost billions due to deals with Dan Gertler and it will only get worse if nothing is done. There are still some crucial aspects of the deal to be clarified, particularly details of the MoU, and the final destination of the assets that will be recovered,” CNPAV spokesman Jean-Claude Mputu said in a statement.
“The two sides have formally ended the multi-year contract after negotiations. DRC (Congo) takes back control of its mining and oil assets,” said the government.
