A Milan Court has sentenced two defendants to prison terms in a Nigerian corruption case related to a 2011 offshore oil-field purchase.
Reuters reports that Nigerian Emeke Obi and Italian, Gianluca Di Nardo, were each given four-year jail sentences, Thursday.
It did not provide much details of the case which stems from the 2011 purchase by energy companies, Eni and Shell, of the OPL-245 offshore oilfield in Nigeria for about $1.3 billion.
Meanwhile, Shell stated: “Based on our review of the Prosecutor of Milan’s file and all of the information and facts available to us, we do not believe that there is a basis to convict Shell or any of its former employees.
“If the evidence ultimately proves that improper payments were made by Malabu or others to then current government officials in exchange for improper conduct relating to the 2011 settlement of the long standing legal disputes, it is Shell’s position that none of those payments were made with its knowledge, authorisation or on its behalf.
“We believe the trial judges in Italy will conclude that there is no case against Shell or its former employees.
“Shell attaches the greatest importance to business integrity. It’s one of our core values and is a central tenet of the Business Principles that govern the way we do business. Shell has clear rules on anti-bribery and corruption and these are included in our Code of Conduct for all staff. There is no place for bribery or corruption in our company.”
Before the judgment, Reuters had stated that oil majors, Shell and Eni, will be carefully monitoring a first ruling this week by a Milan judge in one of the energy industry’s biggest corruption scandals for clues to what might be round the corner for them.
It had stated: “The two companies are embroiled in a long-running graft case revolving around the purchase in 2011 of one of Africa’s biggest oilfields – Nigeria’s OPL 245 – for about $1.3 billion.
“The The case, which involves Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi and four former Shell managers including one-time Shell Foundation Chairman Malcolm Brinded, has spawned legal cases spanning several countries and is expected to drag on for months.
“But this Thursday, in a case running parallel to the main trial, a judge will decide, for the first time, whether $1.1 billion of the sum paid was siphoned in bribes to win the license to the field. Eni and Shell, as well as their managers, deny any wrongdoing.”
It quoted a legal source as stating that, “while the ruling will not tie the court’s hand in the main trial, it will nonetheless constitute a sort of pre-judgement.
“It’s clear the ruling will become a first building block in favour of the prosecution or the defence … it will be a first verdict by a third-party judge on the matter.”
It had added, “In a fast-track procedure that began last November, the judge will be called on to decide whether Nigeria’s Emeke Obi and Italian Gianluca Di Nardo, who the prosecution says were middle men, should be convicted in the case or acquitted.”
