Eni Continues To Deny Any Illegal Conduct

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Claudio Descalzi
Claudio Descalzi

Milan prosecutors are investigating Eni Chief Executive Claudio Descalzi over the suspected payment of bribes to secure an oil contract in Nigeria, the Italian state-controlled oil and gas company admitted Thursday.

Claudio Descalzi
Claudio Descalzi

“Eni continues to deny any illegal conduct,” a company statement said. “Eni is cooperating with the Milan prosecutor’s office, and is confident that the correctness of its actions will emerge during the course of the investigation.”

The Corriere della Sera newspaper first broke the story.

It wrote that Eni is suspected of having paid 190 million dollars to an intermediary linked to former Nigerian Oil Minister Dan Etete before securing extraction rights for the Opl 245 oil block, in conjunction with Shell.

In 2011, Eni gave 1.09 million dollars to the Nigerian government for the licence. Shell paid an additional 200 million dollars. The Italian energy giant insisted that no other money changed hands in the Opl 245 affair.

“Eni highlights that it entered into agreements for the acquisition of the block only with government of Nigeria and Shell. The entire payment for the issuance of the license to Eni and Shell was made uniquely to the Nigerian government,” it said.

At the time of the deal, Descalzi was head of Eni’s oil division. He was promoted to chief executive in April, replacing Paolo Scaroni, who according to Corriere della Sera is also under investigation for corruption.

Eni did not confirm this, but said Chief Development, Operations and Technology Officer Robert Casula was involved in the enquiry.

Corriere della Sera said that acting on a request from prosecutors in Milan, a court in Britain had frozen two bank accounts worth 110 and 80 million dollars respectively, belonging to the Nigerian intermediary who allegedly received the bribes.

On the Milan stock exchange on Thursday, Eni shares were down by about 1 per cent in late morning trading, one of the worst performances of the day.
GNA

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