By Sergio Goncalves
LISBON (Reuters) -Portugal’s Finance Ministry has requested an audit of a contract signed in May by the central bank, whose governor’s term ended on Saturday, for the construction of its new headquarters that has raised concerns about financial and legal risks.
The announcement by the ministry late on Tuesday follows a report by news site Observador that the 192-million-euro ($225-million) promissory contract had been signed despite due diligence warnings of “high-risk contingencies,” including significant potential cost overruns and licensing problems.
The central bank declined to comment on the audit on Wednesday. The Observador said it told them it used national and international best practices for rigorous control of the contract’s legality and financial terms.
Following the report, the junior ruling coalition partner, the conservative CDS-PP, late on Tuesday summoned Bank of Portugal Governor Mario Centeno to explain the situation before a parliamentary committee that will take place in September after the summer recess. It also asked the central bank to send the contract and due diligence studies to the committee.
The centre-right government is expected at a cabinet meeting on Thursday to decide whether to reappoint or replace Centeno, a Socialist who was appointed in 2020 by a previous centre-left administration.
Centeno was criticised by the political right for moving from his role as finance minister to the central bank in 2020. His detractors said the move undermined the institution’s independence.
The Finance Ministry said it was requesting the audit, to be carried out by its General Financial Inspectorate, “in defence of the institution (central bank) and in full respect for its independence”.
($1 = 0.8524 euros)
(Reporting by Sergio Goncalves; editing by Barbara Lewis)
