The Danquah Institute has threatened to go to court if the Port expansion project agreement between the Meridian Port Services and Ghana Ports and Harbors Authority (GPHA), signed in 2015, is not renegotiated.
Executive Director of the Danquah Institute, Edward Asumani, at a press conference on Tuesday, said they will have no option than to go to court “after 60 days” if their advice is disregarded.
The Institute is accusing the John Mahama administration of pushing the GPHA into a bad deal that will lead to the nation losing millions of cedis.
Speaking at a press conference, the new Executive Director of the Danquah Institute, Edward Asumani stated that, Ghanaians will lose 72 percent of the $109 million of revenue that will be generated at the ports next year if the agreement remains in its current form.
“If the MPS agreement is implemented in its current form, GPHA and Ghanaians will lose 72% of the $109 million revenue GPHA made in 2017. Expected annual revenue will drop to just over $30 million by 2019. Over the life-cycle of the contract, GPHA stands to lose in excess of $2 billion.”
“At least fourteen hundred [1,400] Ghanaians permanently employed between Tema and Takoradi ports will lose their jobs by 2020 if the agreement is not renegotiated,” he added.
Background
The terminal 3 port expansion deal was signed in 2015. Parliament in 2016 granted a tax waiver to the tune of 832 million dollars to MPS to enable it import some equipment it will be needing for the project into the country.
The port is expected to be the largest cargo port in West Africa, and one of the best in Africa, with a capacity of 3.5 million 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU) per annum.
Meridian Port Services (MPS), the company that is undertaking the Tema Port Expansion project, has already announced that the first batch of cranes for the project are being loaded to set sail from Shanghai to Tema.
This is after the final inspection and approval of the fully-assembled cranes, underwent the testing cycle.
The first batch of cranes are expected to arrive at the Tema Port on 19th December.
The Tema Port Expansion project is expected to be completed by 2019.
The project cost has since been reduced to 1.2 billion dollars, following the completion of the actual cost of implementation.
MPS Limited has been working on the expansion project since 2016.
The Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority has a thirty percent stake in the company.
Fifteen percent is guaranteed, while the remaining is expected to be obtained through the re-injection of royalties due the GPHA.
Meridian Port Services, which is funding the project under a public-private-partnership (PPP) program, is one of three companies involved in a joint venture with the Ghana Ports and Harbors Authority (GPHA) to undertake the expansion.
The other two companies are Bolloré Africa Logistics and APM Terminals.
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citinewsroom
