Construction firm, Commisimpex, is calling upon the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to make settlement of its 1.2 billion euro ($1.35 billion) debt dispute with Congo Republic a precondition for a bailout deal, according to a letter seen by Reuters.
Commisimpex wrote that the IMF should demand that Congo fully and properly record its debt to the company in its public accounts as a precondition for IMF granting the bailout programme.
It also said the Fund should demand Congo disclose the payment scenario of that debt under the debt sustainability analysis prepared with IMF staff.
It added that the IMF should require Congo to engage in negotiations with Commisimpex over the payment of the debt.
Commisimpex, which worked on construction and public works projects from the early 1980s until a Congolese court ordered its liquidation in 2012, said debt stemming from decades-old unpaid bills must also be taken into account.
The letter, dated July 5, was sent by Commisimpex’s lawyers and addressed to the IMF’s acting Managing Director David Lipton and director of its African department Abebe Selassie.
“The IMF has required the Congo to negotiate with the two other significant groups of creditors with which it is in default. It is patently unfair that the IMF appears to be favouring one set of creditors over others,” the letter said.
Congo’s negotiations for an IMF bailout programme have dragged on since 2017.
The Fund’s executive board is due to consider a bailout for Congo on Thursday after the government agreed to restructure a portion of its debt to China.
The IMF had also required Congo – an oil producer and OPEC member – to make progress towards restructuring debt owed to oil trading companies.
The IMF did not immediately comment on the letter.
Congo’s government spokesman Thierry Moungalla said he would not comment on Commisimpex.
Commisimpex has pursued Congo in courts in Europe and the United States for two decades, winning a series of court decisions as it has attempted to recoup the debt.
Congo has not paid, however. And in 2012, the country said the firm owed 1.3 billion euros in social security payments built up over 30 years. A Congolese court then ordered the firm into liquidation.
