The Congolese Agency for Major Works (ACGT) announced on May 11, 2026, that it had terminated the contract awarded to Congolese firm Horizon Corporation for the modernization of Tshikapa airport, which serves as the capital of Kasai province.

According to the ACGT, Chinese partner SISC, which oversees the implementation of the infrastructure program financed by Sicomines under the minerals-for-infrastructure agreement, is expected to appoint a new contractor shortly.

The agency cited unsatisfactory progress on the construction site, as well as concerns over compliance with the technical standards outlined in the project specifications.

In an official statement, the ACGT said a joint mission with SISC SA was deployed to Tshikapa from May 7, 2026, to assess progress on the project. Experts inspected completed sections of the site as well as an erosion zone threatening to split the runway in two. Following the assessment, the mission concluded that the project was more than 11 months behind schedule since the contract was signed with Horizon Corporation.

Concerns surrounding the project had already been raised several months earlier by Kasai Governor Crispin Mukendi Bukasa. During a visit to the airport in November 2025, after heavy rains rendered the runway unusable, he said the infrastructure was no longer capable of receiving aircraft because of the advanced deterioration of the runway.

At the time, he also stated that the company in charge of the project had already received a $400,000 advance payment, although work had yet to begin in earnest several months after the project was announced.

Financial and technical disputes

Horizon Corporation, however, disputed the account presented by the authorities and project partners. During a visit by Infrastructure and Public Works Minister John Banza to Tshikapa in March 2026, Horizon Corporation Director General Horizon Massamba gave the company’s version of events.

According to Massamba, an initial contract worth about $3 million was signed in February 2025, but the company received only around 1% of the contract value — roughly $300,000 before tax — intended solely for site preparation.

He added that a second contract worth about $20 million was signed in August 2025, bringing the total project value to approximately $23 million.

Massamba said the delays stemmed from disagreements with SISC over several technical and financial aspects of the project. Among the main points of contention were the runway specifications, particularly its width. Horizon Corporation wanted the runway expanded to 45 meters to accommodate aircraft such as the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320.

The company also argued that the planned airport infrastructure did not meet international standards.

Horizon Corporation further said the suspension of work was linked to financial guarantees requested by SISC SA after the contracts had already been signed. According to the company, the Chinese partner was now requesting a bank guarantee equivalent to $4 million, whereas the original agreements had designated the ACGT as guarantor.

On the monitoring platform for the Sino-Congolese infrastructure program, the cost of the Tshikapa airport modernization project is estimated at about $23.2 million. The same data shows that the project’s financial execution rate stands at 21.95%, meaning nearly $5 million has already been allocated to the project.

Timothée Manoke