Globaltask attempts to "reconnect" as its dispute with Piauí reaches its final stretch.

Globaltask has taken Piauí from last place to the top of the ranking of best internet connection services in the country. It is this history of success that is currently driving the company to seek new digital infrastructure contracts in Mato Grosso, Tocantins, and Maranhão – all under the same public-private partnership ( PPP ) model.

But, ironically, PPP Piauí Conectado gave Globaltask the track record and led the company (in the first quarter of 2024) to file for judicial reorganization (RJ) in the 1st Civil Court of Cuiabá, initiating its biggest contractual dispute.

But Globaltask says that what happened in Piauí was an "outlier." And that the lessons learned about what can go wrong in a connectivity PPP are now a competitive advantage.

"We only knew what could go right [in the PPP with Piauí]. Now we know what can go right and what can go wrong as well," Edson Luiz Ribeiro, president of Globaltask, told NeoFeed .

Until October, Globaltask's attention will be focused on resolving the conflict with the government of the State of Piauí at the Arbitration and Mediation Center of the Brazil-Canada Chamber of Commerce (CAM-CCBC). This month, the company achieved two partial victories.

On May 12, Globaltask's creditors approved an addendum to the bankruptcy plan that links payments to a "liquidity event".

With seven companies from the group in RJ (judicial reorganization), the approved plan creates this mechanism after partial decisions in arbitration and in court (the dispute is occurring simultaneously on both fronts) have opened avenues that can transform judgments into immediate cash for Globaltask.

In practice, if the arbitration results in compensation or if there is a release of guarantees linked to the original contract, creditors who join the plan as "partners" will receive 100% of their credits within five business days.

"The termination happened abruptly, without any preparation. We were in the middle of huge investments and we weren't prepared," says Ribeiro. "80% of the creditors are with us, supporting us. They are waiting for the release of the compensation."

The process that could define Globaltask's financial future at CAM-CCBC is structured around three scenarios, developed at the request of the arbitration tribunal itself.

The first is the return to the contract combined with compensation for losses accumulated since its termination. Globaltask, winner of the 2018 PPP tender to build a fiber optic network connecting 101 cities, had its contract extended in 2021 to all 224 cities in Piauí through an addendum that increased the investment from R$ 214 million to R$ 396 million over the 30-year contract.

According to Ribeiro, this scenario is the most likely. "Life goes on, and the State compensates us for the losses we've suffered since 2024. That's the optimal, ideal scenario," says the businessman.

The second option stipulates that the State's actions be considered illegal, but without resuming operations; that is, only compensation would be paid to Globaltask.

The third, which Ribeiro considers "the most remote," starts from the validity of the State's administrative acts and calculates what would be due in compensation even under that framework.

Given the history, this scenario should not be ruled out. In 2023, Rafael Fonteles (PT) succeeded Wellington Dias (PT) as governor of Piauí and, in January, unilaterally decided to pay only 35% of the contract value. The idea was to reclaim the concession for the State. At that time, Globaltask had invested approximately R$ 250 million in the project. And Fonteles is the favorite in the polls for reelection.

For Globaltask, the schedule is tight. After the pleading rounds, the preliminary hearing takes place in August, with closing arguments in the following weeks. The trial begins on October 15th, and the court has 60 days to publish its decision.

The arbitration process, however, faces resistance. The State of Piauí, which signed an arbitration clause in the contract, has been seeking measures in the Piauí judiciary to suspend the tribunal's decisions.

"The State does not accept arbitration. It tries at all costs to weaken the process, through anti-arbitration measures with the local judiciary, exercising its political influence," says Ribeiro.

Legal plausibility

In addition to the creditors' approval of the amendment to the judicial reorganization plan on May 8, the 1st Civil Court of Cuiabá recognized "legal and factual plausibility" in the request from Globaltask and all the companies undergoing reorganization regarding the so-called 'liquidity cushion'.

This paved the way for some of the funds linked to the escrow account to be managed in a court-controlled account with a view to preserving business activity.

Since the dispute between Globaltask and the government of Piauí went to court, payments have been suspended. Banco do Brasil is the fiduciary agent of the PPP and is responsible for retaining part of the State Participation Fund (FPE) as a guarantee of payment to the concessionaire.