Africa-Press – Tanzania. THE high court commercial division has temporarily restrained three respondents from taking any action in respect to advance payment guarantee worth 1.2bn/- and bank performance guarantee worth 409.9m/-.
The respondents are the two companies of Arab Contractors Tanzania Ltd and Elsewedy Electric Tanzania Ltd which operate under joint venture Company as JVACEE as well as Stanbic Bank Tanzania.
Judge Deo Nangela issued such a temporary order after considering an application lodged by the applicant, Bharya Engineering & Contracting Company Limited (BECCO).
The BECCO sought court order to stop such payments from the Stanbic Bank Tanzania Ltd to Arab Contractors Tanzania and the Elsewedy Electric Tanzania Ltd until hearing of both parties over their contractual disputes.
The JVACEE had subcontracted the BECCO to construct a 77-kilometre road from Kibiti to the construction site of the Julius Nyerere Hydropower Project (JNHP).
However, the two parties have since November last year entered into a pay dispute after the JVACEE claimed that the work was underperformed.
With that regard, the BECCO decided to seek court injunction to stop the Stanbic Bank Tanzania not to pay the JVACEE earlier deposited advance payment guarantee worth 1.2bn/- and bank performance guarantee worth 409.9m/-.
Judge Nangela stated that the application to restrain the respondents has been brought under section 2(3) of the Judicature and application of Laws. The applicant submitted the matter under a certificate of urgency.
The application was made by two learned advocates; Mr Benedict Ishabakaki and Idith Ntweve on behalf of the applicant, BECCO.
“Having heard the submission by Mr Ishabakaki, I am convinced that in the interest of justice interim orders of this Court should be given to ensure that the status quo is maintained till the hearing of both parties,” the Judge stated.
Therefore, the court has ordered that the respondents, their agents, workmen, assignees and any person working under their instructions be restrained from taking any action in respect to paying such advance payment.
The Judge ordered the parties to convene on November 20 for hearing of the matter.
From early this year , the contractual dispute involving the JVACEE and the BECCO was presented and discussed at different levels for mediation, including the Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner’s office which then referred the matter to the Energy Ministry.
The latest meeting for mediation at the ministry was held this month, chaired by the Energy Commissioner Engineer Felchesmi Mramba.
The meeting was intended to close the matter amicably by reaching a consensus.
Speaking to the Sunday News recently, Permanent Secretary of the Energy Ministry, Eng Leonard Masanja, said the ministry was still mediating the dispute in seeking to resolve the issue amicably.
“We are now preparing a report for resolving that matter. We will release the report,” Eng Masanja stated.
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