Bruce Retires From Sithe Global (SG, 30/07/13)

Bruce Wrobel is fired from SITHE GLOBAL (SG). It is not clear from the release whether his sacking is connected to his management style and malpractices in the now famous Herakles Debacle in Cameroon. No mention is made in the release about SG activities in Cameroon.

The agro-industrial component of SG is known as Herakles Farms alias Sithe Global - Sustainable Oils Cameroon (SG-SOC).

Even though the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife (MINFOF) has lifted its ban on the company in Cameroon, HF is witnessing serious financial problems as financial institutions are not so ready to back such a liability.

HF has laid off above 95 percent of its workers in Cameroon. The Talangaye oil palm nursery employed 750 workers. Today, there are only 27 workers

in Talangaye.
HF recently sold its palm seedlings to PAMOL operating in Mundemba and Ekondo Titi in Ndian Division.

It is feared HF is looking for a buyer to sell the land concession of 73,086 hectares of pristine rain forest it claimed to have been attributed in Cameroon.

Apart from the Establishment Convention signed unilaterally between Louis Paul Motaze and SG-SOC in September 2009, the other legal requirements have not been met.

HF has been involved in illegal logging in Fabe and Lipenja I in Mundemba and Toko Sub Divisions. HF has also logged hundreds of hectares

of economic value timber in Talangaye illegally.
According to Cameroon Land Tenure Law, only the President of the Republic of Cameroon can sign a land concession above 50 hectares. President Biya has signed no Decree granting a land concession to HF or SG-SOC.

HF alias SG-SOC has been involved in
serious corruption in Cameroon. Local elite have been recruited as Community Based Officers (CBO), whose role is to convert opponents of the project to supporters. HF supplies tons of Fish and rice to villages likely to support project around feast periods. HF also buys crates of beer for villagers.

HF also organized free medical consultation and provided free medication to some villages in Mundemba, Toko and Nguti Sub Divisions in 2012. It is alleged HF did not seek a government authorization before indulging in the medical intervention.

People were operated in makeshift structures ill-prepared for surgical interventions.

HF has also granted university scholarships to some students from families supporting project under the Dr. Issidore Timti Scholarship Program. Scholarship is in honor of Dr. Issidore Timti who started SG-SOC in Cameroon. Timti is blamed for misleading HF into believing it was going to be a smooth ride grabbing land in Cameroon. Under Timti, the opinions, Free, Prior and Informed Consent of the people to be affected by the palm plantation was not sought.

Pillars and beacons were planted through out the forest by a surveyor from Ghana even before the Lands Consultative Boards (LCB) of Mundemba, Toko and Nguti Sub Divisions had been constituted to select and demarcate land to be allocated to HF.

HF has been lying to its partners about the successes of the project. Many reports from local environmental organizations like Centre for Environment and Development (CED) and RELUFA based in Yaounde have exposed the illegality and malpractices of HF in Cameroon. SEFE (Struggle to Economize Future Environment has opposed the project in Mundemba.

Nasako Bessingi, coordinator of SEFE has been assaulted while creating awareness about the deleterious effects of the oil palm project in Mundemba and Toko. He has also been arrested and detained.

Greenpeace International, Oakland Institute, Save Wildlife, WWF, GIZ and others have released reports showing how project will adversely affect present and future generations.

It is not clear how his RETIREMENT from SG will affect Herakles Farms in Cameroon.

http://www.sitheglobal.com/press/SitheGlobalAnnouncesNewCEO.pdf http://finance.yahoo.com/news/sithe-global-announces-chief-executive-191300230.html

Sithe Global Announces New Chief Executive OfficerPress Release: Sithe Global Power - Tue, Jul 30, 2013 3:13 PM EDT·

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sithe Global Power (Sithe Global), a power development company owned by funds managed by Blackstone on behalf of its investors, today announced that Bruce J. Wrobel, Chairman and Chief.

Executive Officer of Sithe Global is retiring from the company. Martin B. Rosenberg, Co-founder and President of Sithe Global, will succeed Mr. Wrobel as Chief Executive Officer. Brian H. Kubeck, Chief Commercial Officer and a senior developer at the company will serve as President.'For over three decades, I've had the privilege of working with one of the world's greatest energy development teams,' said Mr. Wrobel. 'I'm proud of the work we have done and am confident in Sithe Global's continued growth and success under Marty and Brian's leadership.'David Foley, Chief Executive Officer of Blackstone Energy Partners and Senior Managing Director at Blackstone said, 'Bruce's vision has played an instrumental role in Sithe Global's growth from a startup in 2005 becoming a leading power developer with projects spanning the globe. We appreciate Bruce's contribution over the last eight years and wish him continued success.'Mr. Foley

added, 'Marty Rosenberg and Brian Kubeck have over 40 years of combined experience managing all aspects of the development, financing, construction and operation of energy projects throughout the world and have been part of Sithe Global's senior leadership team from the very start. Their leadership and experience

have been a key factor in Sithe Global's success to date and we look forward to continuing our partnership with them and the rest of the Sithe Global team.'Since Blackstone's initial investment in 2005, Sithe Global successfully developed and implemented a number of internationally recognized electric generating projects, including the approximately $1 billion 875 MW Goreway Station Project, a natural gas-fired combined cycle plant located in Brampton, Ontario, and the approximately $900 million 250 MW Bujagali hydroelectric project on the Nile River, in Uganda, a project which was awarded the Africa Power Deal of the Year 2007 by Euromoney 'Project Finance Magazine.'About Blackstone:Blackstone is one of the largest alternative asset managers in the world, with $230 billion in assets under management, and is a leading global private equity firm and energy private equity franchise. Blackstone is currently investing out of Blackstone Capital

Partners VI ('BCP VI'), a $16.7 billion diversified general purpose private equity fund, and Blackstone Energy Partners ('BEP'), a $2.5 billion energy-focused private equity fund. Blackstone's private equity investments in the

energy sector are funded jointly by BEP and BCP VI, which together represent over $5 billion of equity capital allocated to energy.Over the last decade, Blackstone has built a leading energy sector private equity investing franchise with an extensive track record of investing in partnership with talented management teams seeking to capitalize on their growth opportunities and realize the full potential of their assets. Led by David Foley, the Chief Executive Officer of BEP, this dedicated team of professionals has committed and invested more than $7.5 billion of equity in over 25 energy transactions, across a broad range of geographies and throughout the energy value-chain: upstream, midstream, services & equipment, downstream and

power. Power companies represent a significant share of Blackstone's capital commitments to the energy sector and remain a key focus area for new investments. Blackstone's current portfolio of power investments includes: Sithe Global, Moser Baer, Monnet, Global Offshore Wind and PQ Energy.Further information is available at http://www.blackstone.com. Follow us on Twitter @Blackstone.About Sithe Global:Sithe Global Power (Sithe Global) is 99% owned by funds managed by Blackstone. Blackstone originally purchased an 80% ownership interest in Sithe Global in 2005 and subsequently increased its ownership to 99% in 2011 with the objective of facilitating Sithe Global's plans to develop, finance, construct and operate electric power generation facilities in the U.S. and certain other international markets.Sithe Global is led by a seasoned management and technical team with extensive independent power project development experience, and a proven record of

identifying project development and acquisition opportunities which create substantial value for its investors. The Sithe Global management team has successfully developed over 50 power projects in nine countries with a capital investment in excess of $5 billion.Please see: http://www.sitheglobal.com.Contact:Contact:Sithe Global

Thomas J. DeLeo, 212-351-0079
[email protected]
or
Blackstone
Oriane Schwartzman, 212-390-2250
[email protected]

Fon Christopher Achobang
Department of Linguistics
Faculty of Arts
University of Buea
P.O. Box 63 Buea

Rights Consultant
The Cameroons

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