Adani’s $95 million port contract in Tanzania remains intact amid bribery controversy
According to Reuters, a senior official from the country’s ports authority confirmed that Tanzania would continue with the projects involving a unit of the Adani conglomerate, even after U.S. authorities indicted billionaire chairman, Gautam Adani on charges of bribery and fraud.
It is important to note that Gautam Adani, along with his nephew, were recently indicted by the U.S. government for their alleged involvement in a $265 million scheme to bribe Indian officials in order to secure power-supply contracts.
In an earlier report, Business Insider Africa revealed that under two hours of trade after the charges were made public, shares of companies related to Adani, including his flagship Adani Enterprises, Adani Green Energy, and Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd., crashed by 20%.
Also, Kenyan President William Ruto announced the cancellation of the country’s main airport concession deal and the termination of a $736 million, 30-year public-private partnership deal signed last month by the energy ministry with an Adani Group.
The Tanzanian government and Adani ports, a subsidiary of the Adani Group signed a 30-year concession agreement in May, granting it the operation of Container Terminal 2 at the Dar es Salaam port.
Additionally, Adani Ports entered into a share purchase agreement to acquire a 95% stake in the state-owned Tanzania International Container Terminal Services for $95 million.
“We don’t have any problems with anyone. Everything we are doing is according to our laws and agreements,” Director General of Tanzania Ports Authority, Plasduce Mbossa told Reuters.
“For contracts we have, we don’t have such claims (of wrongdoing). If there are other people who are taking actions, then they are doing so according to their reasons.” he added.