Who Authorized Move Into WCL Concession? | Mining

Questions are mounting over who authorized an attempt to move a 40-foot container onto Western Cluster concession area in Bomi County, amid allegations that individuals behind the move invoked a “presidential mandate” to justify their actions.

The Daily Observer has not independently verified the existence of any such presidential mandate, and has seen no document or other evidence establishing that President Joseph Nyuma Boakai or the Executive Mansion authorized the removal of Western Cluster Liberia (WCL) from any portion of its concession.

In an effort to establish whether the reported action has any presidential authorization, the Observer contacted Presidential Press Secretary Kula Fofana, asking whether President Boakai, the Executive Mansion, or anyone acting on the President’s authority had issued any mandate, directive or authorization for WCL’s removal from any portion of its concession or for another entity to occupy or operate there.

Fofana had not responded by publication time. This story will be updated should the Executive Mansion provide clarification.

The controversy emerged Thursday when journalists visiting the concession area in Tubmanburg observed a 40-foot container being transported onto the premises amid resistance from WCL.

Local residents and eyewitnesses alleged that individuals associated with the move claimed to have authorization from local authorities. Some witnesses further alleged that a “presidential mandate” had been invoked in connection with plans to establish a wood-processing enterprise in the area.

Those allegations remain unverified.

One eyewitness alleged that an unnamed former government official had warned that police could be used to enforce WCL’s removal if the company resisted the move. The Observer has not independently confirmed the alleged statement or identified the former official said to have made it.

It also remains unclear who owns the container, what it contained, who commissioned its transportation, and which individual or institution authorized its entry onto the concession.

Witnesses said the driver transporting the container claimed he had been sent by local authorities. That account has also not been independently confirmed.

Efforts by journalists to obtain clarification from county authorities did not immediately establish whether the Bomi County administration authorized the action.

WCL resisted the attempted entry and alerted its headquarters in Monrovia.

The Ministry of Mines and Energy, meanwhile, has maintained that the concession remains legally under Western Cluster’s control and reportedly advised the company to formally report unauthorized entry onto its concession.

That position creates an important question of authority: if the Ministry responsible for regulating the mining sector recognizes WCL’s continuing rights over the concession, who authorized another party to move onto the property?

The issue could carry implications beyond the immediate dispute in Bomi County.

Concession agreements establish rights and obligations between investors and the Liberian government. Any attempt to alter access to concession property would therefore be expected to proceed through established legal and administrative processes rather than competing assertions of authority on the ground.

Western Cluster controls significant iron ore deposits in Bomi Hills, Bea Mountain and Mano River. The deposits were previously operated by the Liberia Mining Company and National Iron Ore Company before those operations closed in the 1980s and 1990s.

The deposits are estimated to contain approximately three billion tons of iron ore.

In 2011, India’s Sesa Goa, part of Vedanta Resources, acquired Western Cluster Limited for nearly US$100 million. Operations were later disrupted by the Ebola outbreak and COVID-19 pandemic, which were cited as force majeure events.

WCL resumed operations in 2022 following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Liberia.

The company says it has invested approximately US$300 million in Liberia, including US$15.5 million in community development funding and investments in roads, bridges and other infrastructure.

For now, fundamental questions surrounding Thursday’s incident remain unanswered: Who owns the container? Who ordered it onto the concession? Did any county official authorize the move? Who is behind the proposed wood-processing operation? And was there, in fact, any directive from the President or Executive Mansion?

Until those questions are answered, claims of a “presidential mandate” remain allegations — not established fact.