Page 58 - March 2022 Issue 604

á``bô`Øàe QÉ``ÑNG
Coral and Liquigas expansion opens the door to speculations and fake news:
“The truth behind the rise of a family business that supported the Lebanese energy sector in time of crisis”
Despite the ongoing economic crisis in Lebanon, the private sector has
proven once more its resilience to unexpected political and social down-
turns.
Family businesses in Lebanon constitute the bulk of its private sector cre-
ating a lifeline to the country’s instability during the last few years; fami-
ly businesses that opted to invest, resist and expand in their homeland
holding tight to their roots and history.
Coral and Liquigas are in the core of the successful business stories that stood
still believing in their homeland and expanding to meet with the rising demand
on petroleum products by investing in local assets and mainly in employing
Lebanese talented youth reaching a total of 800 employees in 2021.
Coral and Liquigas well established network has spurred speculations,
rumors and misinformation reaching even accusation in the wake of a
media system today that has become vulnerable to social media unfound-
ed allegations and channeled false information.
In an interview with Mr. Oscar Alfred Yamin, Chairman of A. Yamin
Group, the campaigns targeting his two companies, Liquigas and Coral,
which got harshly accentuated with the start of Lebanon’s economic and
social crisis, were tackled for further investigation. Oscar Yamin answered
several questions related to the allegations in question.
* Several rumors were recently circulating in the media, especially dur-
ing the last couple of years, that the Yamin family owns Coral and
Liquigas Companies in partnership with politicians. Moreover, one of
them was explicitly named as well. What are your comments regard-
ing these claims of ownership?
- Thank you for bringing this up since this matter needs a once and for all clarifica- panies to different political parties and certain specific politicians, that funni-
tion.
My two brothers Antonio, Edgar and I have inherited the petroleum products
distribution business that was started in 1964 by our father Alfred Semaan
Yamin. The A. Yamin Group is a purely commercial group of companies,
having no political affiliation either directly or indirectly and conducts its busi-
ness in utmost transparency and in compliance with the applicable
Lebanese laws and regulations, and in accordance with international regu-
lations, directions and decisions.
My brothers and I, have started working with our father very early, during our
teenage years, weekends, and school vacations and during our university
studies, and have gradually expanded the business.
In 2005, our group of companies A. Yamin Group acquired Liquigas Liban
SAL. In 2017, as part of its continued business expansion the Group
acquired the British Company The Coral Oil Company Limited UK and its
Lebanese branch which had a significant market share in the Lebanese Jet
A1, diesel and gasoline distribution for over 90 years. We now serve approx-
imately 200 Coral service gas stations in Lebanon, of which 20% are owned
or directly managed by the Group and the remaining franchised.
With the acquisition of Coral, A. Yamin Group now holds a major role in the
petroleum sector in Lebanon, managing alone more than one third of the
overall local petroleum storage capacity, and is currently handling a consid-
erable market share in Lebanon.
Following our last business expansion in 2017 and in times of social and
economic unrest that started in October 2019, we were startled with an orga-
nized campaign of lies, slander, and incitement targeted our companies
“Liquigas” and “Coral” on social media.
In 2020, the campaign of lies and incitement
intensified and became more recurrent, espe-
cially during the most challenging and
unprecedented economic and social crisis
that Lebanon has been enduring lately.
During this precarious period, Coral was
among the few gasoline and diesel import-
ing and distributing companies that contin-
ued its supply of those two vital products to
all Lebanese regions and all economic sec-
tors. Our ability to supply Lebanon with
diesel, Jet A1, and gasoline was only possi-
ble during these times of financial chal-
lenges because of our outstanding reputa-
2022 (¢SQÉe) QGPG - 604 O~©dG - ájOÉ°üàb’G ¿É«ÑdG
FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: Mr. ANTONIO YAMMINE,
Mr. EDGAR YAMIN AND Mr. OSCAR YAMIN
tion, solid network of relationships, as well as our available facilities with for-
eign suppliers and banks. Coral ensured the Lebanese people some social
and economic safety and a sense of security in these dire times.
To answer your question rumors in social media indeed falsely attributed
during these various campaigns the ownership of Coral and Liquigas com-
ly enough are opposed to each other in politics and presenting contradicto-
ry agendas which leads to inaccuracy of the disseminated information and
of course these attributions depended on the timing of these campaigns.
So I repeat, our Company was never implicated in political matters nor sup-
ported any particular political party. Our aim is to serve all the Lebanese
people in all regions by ensuring provision of gasoline and diesel in sufficient
quantities to distribution stations in all regions, hospitals, bakeries, munici-
palities, private generators, embassies, schools and universities to enable
them to carry on with their respective duties in the absence of electricity and
public transport that we currently experienced and are still experiencing.
* Do you have, or can you share with us, any document supporting
your arguments, which we can effectively publish?
- These rumors are untrue and can be easily proven to be fake and false. It
is very simple, as when one looks into the official documents of the com-
mercial register that are openly available to the public in both the UK and in
Lebanon, you would undoubtedly know who owns the company. The pub-
lished information clearly shows that the entities are solely owned and con-
trolled by their current three owners (Oscar, Edgar and Antonio Yammine)
through their legal entities. My brothers and I are indeed mentioned as the
sole shareholders, and all the economic rights of those shares go only to the
three of us as Ultimate Beneficiary Owners.
Furthermore, the companies have issued an explanatory statement at the begin-
ning of these campaigns and made the legal documents available on the compa-
ny’s website as part of its transparency policy despite that evidence and clarifica-
tions, the ongoing publication of this fake information demonstrates the bad faith
and the premeditation to damage the reputa-
tion of Coral and Liquigas and their owners.
Moreover, the company also strictly
denies any transfer of its shares to any
third party and any private or political
party. These claims were published by
those with a questionable reputation and
by non-credible publishers when faced
with evidence and against whom we have
successfully presented many legal cases.
We can thus very confidently challenge
whoever has any supporting document or
documents to those utterly false and fake
allegations to make them public.
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