SPIE WITHDRAWS FROM THE YUSUFELI DAM



For Immediate release, 20 December 2003



From Kurdish Human Rights Project, Friends of the Earth, the Ilisu Dam Campaign, and the
Cornerhouse



The future of the town of Yusufeli in Turkey will be looking far brighter in 2003 as the French Ministry
of Finance has stated [1] that lead contractor Spie has withdrawn from the controversial Yusufeli Dam
[2]. Spanish and Belgian companies of the civil works group have also withdrawn - a major blow to the
project, whose future now looks uncertain.



French company Spie has been under pressure from campaign groups and civil society in France, and in
the UK because the company is owned by British construction giant AMEC. After a five year
relationship and months of negotiations, AMEC increased its shareholding in Spie from 46% to 100% on
5 December this year.



Spie has also withdrawn its application from COFACE, the French export credit agency. COFACE
had made support for the project conditional on it meeting World Bank standards. Spie’s withdrawal
means that COFACE will not have to act on this condition.



French-British company Alstom is still pushing ahead with the project.



Hannah Griffiths, Corporates Campaigner at Friends of the Earth said:



“This is a festive present for the people and communities whose future would been damaged by this
destructive project.  It would be an even better present if AMEC-Spie now adopted the World
Commission on Dams guidelines, so that it can be sure it doesn’t get involved in any more projects of
this kind? And on my Christmas list from the UK Government are new laws to make companies legally
answerable for their actions. This might stop Alstom from pushing ahead with the project too.”



Nicholas Hildyard from the Cornerhouse said:

“We are delighted that AMEC has kept its promise to review Spie’s involvement in the project and that
COFACE will not be using French public money to subside the project. But once again export credit
agencies are left without having to introduce robust rules about what they will and will not fund. It is
high time EU governments turned their export credit agencies around so that it is only possible for
them to fund projects that meet the highest standards.”







Notes



[1]        In a letter dated 17/12/02 to Amis de la Terre (Friends of the Earth France)



[2]        If built, the Yusufeli Dam would flood 18 towns and villages drowning the homes of 15,000
people and affecting a further 15,000. An international Fact Finding Mission to the region earlier this
year found that the dam does not meet the international standards and guidelines set by the World
Bank and by the World Commission on Dams. These standards relate to all elements of dam building
including consultation with affected people, adequate compensation for affected people, protection of
natural habitats and proper consideration and analysis of alternatives.



A copy of the Fact Finding Mission’s  report is available at:
 http://www.foe.co.uk/resource/reports/damning_indictment.pdf



Pictures of Yusufeli are available from Friends of the Earth





Contact:
Hannah Griffiths            07855 841 994 (or 07947 318 234)

Nicholas Hildyard         01258 817 518