The_Open_Door_deel1

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Exploration, a subsidiary of Barbara Erzbergbau A.G., which in
its turn was owned (in these days) by four German steel
producers: August Thyssen Hutte (50?), Hoesch A.G. Huttenwerke
(34?), Rheinstahl Huttenwerke A.G. (8?) and Friedrich Krupp
Huttenwerke A.G. (8?).
An essential contribution to the start of the Bong Project was
made by the lawyer Emmett Harmon, an important Government
official, who had been employed by the Germans and who had the
advantage of being able to approach President Tubman at any time
(80). As is stated elsewhere direct contact with the President
in those days, as in earlier days, virtually constituted a sinequa-non
for doing business in Liberia (81). This situation has
not undergone any changes in recent years. Without the proper
contacts it is difficult to succeed or even to survive in
business in Liberia. The fact that non-Liberian are not allowed
to practise law in Liberia has greatly contributed to this state
of affairs (82).
On September 16, 1958 a Concession Agreement was signed between
the Republic of Liberia and the Gewerkschaft Exploration which
was approved by the Legislature of Liberia three months later,
on December 18. It is important to note that in this case, as
well as in the cases of LMC and LAMCO J.V., the financing of
the mining venture was not yet settled on the date of the signing
of the Agreement (83), neither was there any guarantee that
the investors would indeed raise sufficient capital to have the
mining operations started.
The concession agreement (1958) and the opening of the mine (1965)
Gewerkschaft Exploration obtained exclusive exploration and
exploitation rights in respect of all kinds of ores, metals,
minerals, including oil and natural gases but excluding gold and
diamonds within an area of a maximum of 300 square miles
(192,000 acres) which included the Bong Range Area in the Salala
District of the then called Central Province. The concession
would be assigned to a company yet to be formed, the Liberian
Iron Ore Company," though eventually the "Deutsch-Liberian Mining
Company" (DELIMCO) was formed, on November 25, 19 58.
Gewerkschaft Exploration had rejected the name "German-Liberian
Mining Company", which would have led to the abbreviation
GELIMCO (84), possibly in order to avoid confusion as to the
meaning of the first part of the new company's name, which might
just as well have stood for an abbreviation of "Gewerkschaft
Exploration".
The shares of DELIMCO were equally divided into Class A shares -
all owned by the Liberian Government in consideration of the
granting of the exploration and exploitation rights as well as the
supply of all exploration data relevant to the specific mining
rights granted - and Class B shares which were owned by
Gewerkschaft Exploration. The Government thus had obtained a
interest in DELIMCO though it made no cash payment for this