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### Viewing cable 10ASHGABAT5, TURKMENISTAN: BOUYGUES' SHIP IN THE INTERNATIONAL

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Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
10ASHGABAT5 | 2010-01-04 12:12 | 2010-12-12 21:09 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Ashgabat

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    VZCZCXRO0165
    PP RUEHAG RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHNEH RUEHPW RUEHROV RUEHSL
    RUEHSR
    DE RUEHAH #0005/01 0041233
    ZNY CCCCC ZZH
    P 041233Z JAN 10
    FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
    TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3999
    INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
    RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
    RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
    RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 6071
    RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 3765
    RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 3624
    RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 4313
    RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
    RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
    RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
    RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
    RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC
    RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
    RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
    RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
    RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1371
    RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 4250

` `

    2010-01-04

    C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000005

    SIPDIS

    STATE FOR SCA/CEN; EEB
    COMMERCE FOR EHOUSE

    E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/04/2020
    TAGS: ECON PGOV EINV TX
    SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: BOUYGUES' SHIP IN THE INTERNATIONAL
    ECONOMIC STORM

    REF: 09 ASHGABAT 1643

    Classified By: XXXXXXXXXXXXXX for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

    ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Bouygues Batiment International, a major
    French construction company, has relocated large numbers of
    its staff to Turkmenistan from other international operations
    that have closed due to the international economic downturn.
    While Turkmenistan seems to be a cash cow for the company, a
    Bouygues representative notes that working with the
    government of Turkmenistan can be highly problematic: little
    or no input on design, delays caused by presidential
    drive-bys and demands for bribes at customs to clear needed
    materials. Bouygues seems to have figured out how to stay in
    Berdimuhamedov's good graces and will likely continue its
    stream of "grandiose" projects as long as the money lasts.
    END SUMMARY.

    ¶2. (C) According to XXXXXXXXXXX, most of the
    French company's international operations have shuttered,
    or greatly reduced staffing, due
    to lack of projects worldwide. He mentioned specifically
    operations in Moscow and throughout the Caribbean. The
    glaring exception is Turkmenistan: rather than lay off all
    the French nationals working around the world, the company
    moved them here to try and keep up with Turkmenistan's
    seemingly insatiable demand for large-scale projects
    (reftel). The companyXXXXXXXXXX, who is responsible for
    overseeing the 80 million dollar complex for the Institute of
    International Relations, noted that most of the roughly 450
    French citizens working here have arrived recently -- within
    the past nine months.

    ¶3. (C) Bouygues is working on a number of design and build
    contracts for the Government of Turkmenistan, including new
    University complexes (classroom and student housing) and
    government buildings, some of which are located in the
    Archabil area to the west of Ashgabat proper. Bouygues'
    leadership visited Ashgabat on December 29 and signed a
    number of contracts with President Berdimuhammedov, reported
    in the newspapers as, "giving start to a whole complex of
    grandiose projects." While the headlines and press
    statements refer to great cooperation and the honor the
    Bouygues company feels to be working with Turkmenistan,
    XXXXXXXXXXXX we spoke with expressed frustration
    at the startling lack of input from the Turkmen side.
    Bouygues consistently seeks input on what the university
    directors want in their buildings, but the company is met by
    blank stares and a vague order to "submit whatever you think,
    and we'll review it." Seeking to maximize their value to the
    Turkmen government, Bouygues consults with European
    universities to determine what equipment should go into
    classrooms, how the student housing is best arranged and all
    the other details that should be provided by university
    leadership. Frustratingly for Bouygues, when facilities with
    state-of-the-art classrooms and modern European kitchens have
    opened, "the Turkmen go and cook food in the courtyard in
    their traditional kazans, the way they always do. It is,
    please excuse me, like throwing candies before pigs. They
    just don't know what to do with it."

    ¶4. (C) Echoing a source of frustration that is widely felt,
    he also noted that whenever the President drives by any
    construction site, they lose at least a half a day of work.
    Not only are they not allowed to have workers visible, they
    also need to reposition the booms of the cranes in such a way
    so as to ensure that no snipers could possibly use them as a
    shooter's nest. "It is strange that this president is so
    paranoid." He also noted that the lost time due to
    presidential peregrinations is starting to add up, and might
    push the opening of some projects past their planned opening

    ASHGABAT 00000005 002 OF 002

    dates. He also noted delays in clearing building materials
    through customs because the company refuses to pay bribes to
    "expedite" the high quality goods they need to complete their
    projects.

    ¶5. (C) COMMENT: This provides a glimpse into what some
    international companies are willing to put up with in order
    to continue working in Turkmenistan. In Bouygues' case, it
    might be a marriage of convenience: the Turkmen have the
    money, and they need the contracts. Likewise, the company
    has learned how to do business here. Repeated visits by the
    company's leadership to praise the president's economic
    policies and to stay in his good graces helps to guarantee a
    stream of "grandiose" projects. END COMMENT.
    CURRAN

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