Peru's Anti-Corruption Prosecutor has re-opened a case to test whether construction firm Odebrecht received special treatment in its 2006 bid for two major public works, one of them the large-scale irrigation project H2Olmos. 

Odebrecht is one group embroiled in Brazil's high-profile Lava Jato scandal involving graft from government figures relating to contracts from state oil company Petrobras.

In March this year, Odebrecht CEO Marcelo Odebrecht was sentenced to 19 years in jail over his role in the scandal.

Citing Public Ministry sources, AFP reported Peruvian prosecutor Martín Salas had re-opened a case which was closed in September, investigating current President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski's (PPK) role in the concessions granted during his time as Prime Minister under the government of Alejandro Toledo. 

Salas will be taking further testimonies to see whether PPK interfered in Law 28670, which allowed Odebrecht to compete in tenders like H2Olmos and highway project Vía Interoceánica.

In February this year, a report from Brazilian Federal Police implicated then Peruvian President Ollanta Humala as receiving bribes from Odebrecht for public works deals, but the former leader has denied the claims. 

The Olmos project has been of great relevance to the agricultural sector, activating 38,500 hectares of new arable land that has been used to grow crops including sugar cane, table grapes, avocados and blueberries, including participation from some of the produce industry's largest players. 

Odebrecht currently plans to build a mega-hydroelectric dam (Chadin II) that would channel the Marañon River, one of the two main water sources for the upper reaches of the Amazon River. The company has received criticisms for its lack of detailed plans for supporting communities expected to be displaced by the project.

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