Vodacom ordered to pay $21m by DRC court
A court in the Democratic Republic of Congo has ordered South Africa’s Vodacom to pay at least $21 million in unpaid fees to a former consultant, Business Day newspaper said on Friday.
Vodacom, a unit of Britain’s Vodafone Plc, has been locked in a long-standing dispute with its local partner in the DRC, Congolese Wireless Network. Vodacom said in 2010 it was exploring options for the unit, which could include a sale.
The consultant, who worked with Vodacom in its negotiations in the DRC, had originally sued the company for a $40.8 million “success fee”, South Africa’s Business Day said, adding the court awarded about half of that.
Vodacom spokesman Richard Boorman said the company had not received any judgement.
“We would clearly have material objections to any judgement by a DRC court in which a monetary award was granted … while the contractual dispute is currently being held in court in South Africa, which has jurisdiction on the issue.”
Congolese Wireless Network in October filed court papers to block Vodacom from selling its 51 percent stake in the DRC business.
The two companies have been in arbitration after disagreeing over fees from the joint venture.
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