OPL 245: Eni, Shell must face corruption charges in Nigeria, CSOs tell FG 

A coalition of civil society organisations has urged the federal government to press corruption charges against Eni, Shell, and other defendants involved in the OPL 245 deal.

This comes after an Italian court acquitted Shell, Eni and other defendants of corruption charges in the OPL 245 deal.

In a letter addressed to President Muhammadu Buhari, the CSOs said there would be no risk of double jeopardy due to the differences between legal systems in Italy and Nigeria. read more

“Two middlemen have already been found guilty for their role in this deal in a separate trial. A criminal trial of Shell and Eni’s Nigerian subsidiaries is ongoing in Nigeria while they also face an investigation in The Netherlands where Shell has said they expect to face criminal charges. Today’s verdict does not mark the final word in this scandal for Shell and Eni.”

Shell and Eni verdict: Not the final word on this scandal

NGOs and activists are today disappointed and outraged as Shell and Eni – two of the worlds biggest polluters – were found not guilty of corruption relating to the purchase of a Nigerian oilfield, in a Milan trial. Global Witness urges the prosecution to consider all options to appeal this verdict and continues to follow ongoing criminal investigations into the case in Nigeria and the Netherlands. read more

“Two middlemen have already been found guilty for their role in this deal in a separate trial. A criminal trial of Shell and Eni’s Nigerian subsidiaries is ongoing in Nigeria while they also face an investigation in The Netherlands where Shell has said they expect to face criminal charges. Today’s verdict does not mark the final word in this scandal for Shell and Eni.”

Malabu Scandal: Acquittal of Shell, Eni ‘stain on Italy’ — Anti-corruption campaigners

Environmental and social justice groups on Wednesday condemned Italy’s anti-corruption laws as “unfit for purpose”. read more

Eni and Shell Acquitted of Nigeria Bribery Charges in Milan

Alberto Brambilla, Laura Hurst: Mar 17 2021, 9:24 PM Mar 18 2021, 4:43 AM

(Bloomberg) — Eni SpA, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and several of their current and former executives were acquitted of corruption charges related to a Nigerian oil deal by a court in Milan.

The verdict ends a three-year legal saga that loomed large over the tenure of Eni Chief Executive Officer Claudio Descalzi, who was among those found not guilty on Wednesday. Italian prosecutors had sought an eight-year jail term for him. read more

OPL 245 LITIGATION: POLLUTING THE PROCESS

The powerful Italian energy giant Eni is leading lobbying efforts in Europe, pushing for the EU to support climate-wrecking fossil gas – all whilst on the stand in the corporate corruption trial of the decade.

We can also reveal new details surrounding the “OPL 245” trial, in which both Eni and Shell are accused of involvement in a vast bribery scheme that saw hundreds of millions of dollars funnelled to Nigerian politicians.

Key findings

Our new report finds that Eni’s CEO, who is also personally on trial and facing up to eight years in prison, was granted high level access to lobby the EU’s Energy Commissioner as recently as June 2020. read more

EU officials met Italy energy CEO despite corruption trial

By ELENA SÁNCHEZ NICOLÁS: BRUSSELS

15 March 2021

The CEO of Italian energy giant Eni, Claudio Descalzi, was granted access to EU commissioners and officials to push the case for gas in the bloc’s energy transition – whilst allegedly involved in a billion-dollar corruption scandal, according to a report by Global Witness on Monday (15 March).

Descalzi is on trial in Italy, alongside his company Eni plus Royal Dutch Shell, for their roles in the $1.1bn (€921m) purchase of a Nigerian offshore oil field (called OPL 245) in 2011. read more

Some extracts from current customer comments posted on Trustpilot: “Got a debt collecting company to chase me for money 9 days before the bill was due and 10 days after I gave the reading. Half an hour wait to be told – oops”: “If I could give them 0 I would. Horrendous customer service…”: “WHY ARE YOU SUCH A BUNCH OF LYING, CONNIVING, MIS-SELLING PARASITES?”

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted over the past few days on Trustpilot. Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring themes in the negative reviews, including difficulty in communicating with the company. This article posted on 25 JAN 2021. read more

OPL245 Scandal: Coalition urges World Bank group not to protect oil giants

…prosecutions relating to the OPL 245 deal are live in two jurisdictions (Nigeria and Italy); Investigations are also live in The Netherlands, where the prosecutors have told Royal Dutch Shell, which was also a party to the deal that they have sufficient evidence to prosecute. 

A World Bank affiliated group may scuttle Nigeria’s bid to successfully prosecute illicit funds associated with the controversial OPL 245, a coalition of international anti-corruption groups has said. read more

Analysis: Will Nigeria yield in oil deal wrestling bout with Shell and Eni?

By Lionel Faull: 27 October 2020

High profile courtroom dramas involving multiple sides often have the feel of a WWE Smackdown wrestling match: titanic egos clashing with each other, trying to batter their foes into submission. The fighters forge alliances, and the argy-bargy can sometimes spill out of the ring and break out elsewhere in the auditorium.

An epic international corruption trial that is now drawing to a close under the glamourous lights of Milan is a case in point. read more

By John Donovan

In the recent article (below”) about the OPL 245 corruption scandal, published under the translated headline “Eni-Nigeria trial, Prosecutor requests 8 Years sentence for Descalzi,” reference is made to “an axis of spies that runs through this story.”

It mentions the involvement of Shell’s MI6 hires responsible for generating the incriminating emails found in the raid and search of Shell’s HQ that has done so much damage to Shell’s reputation. read more

Anti-graft groups query Nigerian Justice Minister on OPL 245 assets recovery

27 July 2020: Henry Uche

Nigeria’s Minister of Minister and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, has been asked to give full disclosure of recovered assets linked to the OPL multi-billion dollar oil scam.

In a statement delivered by the Chairman of Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) Mr Olanrewaju Suraj, the charge came after the Corner House, Global Witness, Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) and Re-Common, launched a global campaign through a letter to the AGF Malami for transparency in the assets recovered from the scam. In the petition, the groups raised 25 critical questions for Malami. read more

02 JULY 2020

Sergio Spadaro, the Italian deputy prosecutor, on Thursday told a Milan court prosecuting Shell and Eni over the OPL 245/Malabu affair that all parties involved in the deal were corrupt.

He said President Goodluck Jonathan, who led Nigeria from 2010 to 2015, Dan Etete, who allocated OPL 245 to Malabu Oil and Gas — a company in which he had interest as minister of petroleum — in 1998 and Diezani Alison-Madueke, who was minister of petroleum when the oil block was sold to Shell and Eni by Malabu in 2011, all had long-standing relationships. read more

14 JUNE 2020

As oil prices tumble and the world heads into a COVID-19-induced recession, Nigeria needs every naira that it can recover from looted assets that are hidden abroad.

It was never going to be easy getting Nigeria’s money back. The forces lined up against justice for the victims of corruption are mighty, and if they are to be countered, it demands nothing less than the full commitment of the Ministry of Justice to a coherent, well-funded, transparent asset recovery programme. read more

OPL 245 Scandal: Biased media reports protect oil giants, former public officers – Group

Godwin Tsa, Abuja: 24 MAY 2020

A coalition of local and international anti-corruption movements have raised concerns over what they allege to be a plot to foil the corruption charges against some mega oil companies involved in the Malabu (OPL 245) oil scandal.

In a statement on Sunday, the groups under the aegis of the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA), Re-Common, Cornerhouse and Globalwitness collectively called on the media to protect the interest and integrity of the judiciary by being professional in their reportage on the scam associated with OPL 245. read more

Nigeria: Malabu Scandal – Activists Kick As Italy Appoints Accused Official As ENI CEO

By Oladeinde Olawoyin

21 April 2020

The Italian government has re-nominated Claudio Descalzi as Chief Executive Officer of Eni, Italy’s largest multinational company and the country’s largest foreign oil producer in Africa.

Mr Descalzi is set to maintain the leadership role despite an ongoing criminal trial over corruption allegations surrounding the billion dollar 2011 acquisition by Shell and Eni of Nigeria’s OPL 245 oil license.

Italian prosecutors allege that the $1.1bn paid by Eni and their partner Shell for the OPL 245 licence was used to pay former Nigerian oil minister Dan Etete and was “intended for payment to a former Nigerian president, Goodluck Jonathan, members of the government, and other Nigerian public officials”. read more

3.3 THE “OPL 245” BRIBERY CASE

In 2018, Italian prosecutors brought a criminal case over the alleged involvement of Shell, and the Italian oil multinational Eni, in a 1.3 billion US dollar bribery scheme linked to the license of OPL 245. This is the name of one of Nigeria’s most valuable offshore oil blocks.

Thirteen individuals, including some current and former senior managers of Shell and the Italian oil company Eni, are currently on trial in Italy relating to how the two companies acquired the block in 2011.80 The defendants include both companies, a former Royal Dutch Shell Executive Board Member and two former MI6 agents who worked for Shell.81 read more