According to a statement from the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas (Mirempet), proposals from eight competitors have already been analyzed after a due diligence process, whose report was submitted on 29 December 2020.
On January 31, 2020, when tenders were opened for the International Public Tender for the Implementation of an Oil Refinery in Soyo, Zaire province, there were nine competitors.
Lusa questioned Mirempet about the competitor who gave up, but it has not been possible to obtain clarification so far.
Initially, the announcement of the winner was scheduled for March 31 of last year, but was postponed due to the covid-19 pandemic that forced the evaluation and adjudication work to be suspended until June 9, 2020.
According to Mirempet, the evaluation resumed on June 10, 2020, with competitors being asked to validate the proposals, which all did except one.
PricewaterhouseCoopers was the company chosen to carry out the due diligence that took place between 28 September and 15 December.
The best ranked competitors must now renew investment financing guarantees through "renowned financial institutions, as well as the reaffirmation of the corporate structures involved", documents that must be delivered by 1 February 2021.
A prior hearing with competitors is scheduled for 3 February to present the results of the assessment, which can be contested, justified until 1 March 2021.
The Soyo refinery will have the capacity to process 100,000 barrels of oil per day.
