The following is an extremely interesting article on the ins and...

The following is an extremely interesting article on the ins and outs of dealing in the DRC, and I trust there is no fall out to come. Perhaps expectation of these revelations to come may have been creating some unease reflected in the low share price of Nzuri, though no illegality has been suggested so far. It is encouraging that Kabila's brother's (Zoe) company has not always won the projects it has tendered for, and as pointed out, it is pretty much de rigueur for mining and other developers operating in places such as not only DRC but most countries where they are not locally owned to be sure to employ as many locally based contractors and other suppliers as possible....common sense really, as well as sometimes required by law.

http://www.miningweekly.com/article...ith-presidents-brother-2017-07-18/rep_id:3650



"– In the two decades since-billionaire mining investor Robert Friedland founded Ivanhoe Mines, his small team has made some of the biggest mineral discoveries in the world.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, it has done so while trading and contracting with companies controlled by one of President Joseph Kabila’s brothers, searches of thousands of pages of Congolese corporate records obtained by Bloomberg show.

.....In one deal, state documents show how one of Zoe’s companies used a mining licence acquired from Ivanhoe to establish a joint venture with Australia-listed Nzuri Copper and Belgian commodity trader Traxys SA, now owned by Carlyle Group.

While some information on the transactions has been disclosed in stock-market announcements or records held byCongo’s mines registry, Ivanhoe, Nzuri and Traxys have never disclosed Zoe’s controlling interest in the companies with which they’ve been trading, contracting and partnering, according to a review of publicly available corporate filings by Bloomberg.
SIGNED CONTRACTS
Ivanhoe confirmed by email that it signed contracts with the two companies linked to Zoe – Tanga Logistics and MiningSA and La Generale Industrielle et Commerciale au Congo, or TLM and GICC respectively – but said it’s never dealt with him personally and had no knowledge of his involvement in the businesses.
Nzuri also said it’s never dealt with Zoe and declined to comment further. Carlyle referred questions to Traxys, which declined to comment. Zoe was unavailable when Bloomberg sought comment through intermediaries over a period of more than two months.

.....
The month before the first TLM contract was awarded in June 2015, Congo’s government opposed Ivanhoe’s $412-million sale of 49.5% of its holding in Kamoa to China’s Zijin Mining Group. Ivanhoe and TLM say there’s no connection between the award of sub-contracts and the lifting of the government’s objections in September 2015, in a deal that increased Congo’s stake in the project.
“Our intentions with these contracts and transactions was not to gain influence, but to enter into transactions that implemented our business strategy, intelligently and in full compliance with applicable laws,” Johansson said. Zoe’s company wasn’t always successful, he added. In 2015, TLMlost a separate bid for a $37-million contract, he said.
The year 2015 wasn’t the first time Ivanhoe transacted with Zoe’s businesses. GICC acquired another exploration area, Kalongwe, from Ivanhoe in 2010 for $1.2-million, before signing an agreement to develop the mine in November 2013 with Nzuri Copper, then known as Regal Resources Ltd., and Traxys.
Ivanhoe reported the sale price in its September 2012 IPO prospectus, but didn’t disclose the buyer. “The actual sale was conducted through an agent under power of attorney, who identified and contracted with the buyer, which was only later revealed to Ivanhoe as GICC,” Johansson said.

Nzuri and Traxys paid GICC $2-million to set up the joint venture in 2013, according to Nzuri’s filings at the time. GICChas since been paid at least another $4.26-million and $1.26-million in shares by Nzuri for increased control of theproject, while retaining a 10% stake in the local operating company, Kalongwe Mining SA, according to Nzuri stock-market announcements.
Nzuri Chief Financial Officer Anthony Begovich said the company dealt with GICC management and never with Zoe

REGULATORS' EXPECTATION
Traxys CEO Mark Kristoff declined to comment on theproject, saying Traxys is “a very small shareholder” in Nzuri without board representation. Between 2013 and 2016, Traxys was a 30% shareholder in the local operating company.
GICC is the third-largest stockholder in Nzuri with a 4.8% stake, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
None of the companies have been accused of wrongdoing and it’s not illegal to do business with a sitting member of parliament. Still, knowing who owns businesses that a company is contracting or trading with is essential when operating in complex markets such as Congo, according toSteven Fox, the CEO of global risk-advisory firm Veracity Worldwide.
"It is a clear expectation of regulators,” he said by email fromNew York.

Note pls the bold/emphasis has been added by myself.

Regards to all.