High Court stops Lamu coal mining project

The multibillion-shilling Lamu coal mining project has been put on hold after the High Court temporarily stopped the implementation of the tender awarded to a consortium of local companies.

Lady Justice Mumbi Ngugi stopped the government from entering any binding agreement with Centum-Gulf Energy for the Sh174 billion project pending the determination of a suit before her.

The tender award was challenged by Hebei Construction Company Group and Liketh Investment Group consortium who accused the government of foul play, bias and irregularities in the tendering process.

The company argued that it won the tender and that Centum was not part of the initial 26 bidders.

“It only emerged after the bidders were cut down to five,” it argued.

The Centum-Gulf consortium raised preliminary objections to the suit on grounds that it was filed at the wrong division of the High Court.

Lawyer Kiragu Kimani, for Centum, argued that the suit ought to have been filed in the commercial division of the court, rather than the constitutional court where it was heard on Tuesday.

“The dispute is of a commercial nature and any issue HCIG-Liketh may have should be dealt with either in Parliament’s Petition Committee or the Commercial Court,” he said.

But lawyer Elisha Ongoya, for the petitioners, argued that the Constitutional Court should be the last of all judicial divisions to give up jurisdiction.

“The consortium has made out a case under the jurisdiction of the constitutional court,” Mr Ongoya said.