Corruption scandals in Bolivia
Photo: Salar de Uyuni in the Potosí area in Bolivia. By: Leonardo Rossatti. Source: Pexels.
CAMC is a subsidiary of the Sinomach company, which specializes in industrial machines and services. China CAMC Engineering Co Ltd (CAMC) provides services related to the hiring and management of international projects. It was founded in 2001 and introduced to stock markets in 2006 -shortly after beginning operations- and it was the first company to obtain permission to sell stocks to the public (Initial Public Offering permit) following the reform of the Chinese stock market. The Company is well known and its international works enjoy recognition and prestige. However, the Company has also been at the center of a number of controversies involving corruption in contracting and infrastructure projects in Latin America.
In the case of Bolivia, Carlos Ramos, president of the Yacimientos de Litio Bolivianos (YLB) company, spoke out in a press conference held on July 19, to publicly deny any link to CAMC. This came in response to accusations made by Luciana Campero, deputy of the Comunidad Ciudadana party, who claimed that YLB and CAMC were linked through the construction of a water treatment plant in the Uyuni Salt Flat, in Potosí. The service was provided first by CAMC and then managed by YLB. According to Campero, the company operates at 16% of its capacity and all of its staff are Chinese, hence it disregards local employment. To add to this is the scandal involving CAMC director, Gabriela Zapata, former partner of Evo Morales, who was given a four-year jail sentence for corruption, having been accused of drawing up specification sheets for Bolivian government tenders. It is worth noting that the Company was accused in Ecuador of paying bribes worth 1.3 million dollars to the former comptroller general of the state, Pablo Celi de la Torre, in order to eliminate a long list of sanctions. The company is currently involved in the following projects in Bolivia: Section I of the Montero-Bulo Bulo railroad in Cochabamba; the construction of the sugar and derivatives industrialization plant in San Buenaventura, in La Paz; and the completion of the Misicuni Multiple Project in Cochabamba.
Top headline:
Correo del Sur: YLB niega relación contractual con la empresa china CAMC.
Find out more:
Energía Bolivia: La china CAMC se adjudica cuarto proyecto millonario del Estado.
Los Tiempos (Bolivia): CAMC edificó planta de $us 180 MM para YLB, opera al 16% de capacidad.
Los Tiempos (Bolivia): Diputada de CC afirma que empresa CAMC elabora pliegos de contratos estatales.
Los Tiempos (Bolivia): Piden informe por baja producción y alta presencia china en planta de YLB.
El Comercio (Perú): Empresa china CAM es acusada de pagar sobornos en Perú.