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MEOG PROJECTS & COMPANIES MEOG

Petrofac suspended

from ADNOC tenders

UAE ABU Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC) this In January, the SFO said that Petrofac’s for-
week suspended UK-based Petrofac from com- mer global head of sales, David Lufkin had plead
peting for new contracts until further notice as guilty to three counts of bribery. The offenses
the oilfield services specialist comes under fur- pertain to offers and bribes paid during 2012-
ther scrutiny relating to an historic bribery case. 2018 to influence the result of $3.3bn worth of
In a press release, the company said that the tenders in Petrofac’s favour.
suspension follows the UK Serious Fraud Office’s The former Petrofac employee plead guilty
(SFO) “announcement of additional pleas in Jan- to offering and making corrupt payments to
uary by a former Petrofac employee under the influence the outcome of an EPC tender in 2013,
Bribery Act 2010 in relation to historic contract a subsequent contract in 2014 relating to the
awards in the UAE in 2013 and 2014”. UZ750 development phase of the Upper Zakum
It added that it would “continue to execute field project, and a front-end engineering design
two [engineering, procurement and construc- (FEED) contract that was awarded to Petrofac
tion (EPC)] projects for ADNOC currently for the Bab Integrated Facilities Project also in
under construction”. 2014.
Meanwhile, ADNOC has said “that it recog- The SFO said: “Total payments of approx-
nises the long-standing nature of its relationship imately $30mn were made, or were due to be
with Petrofac and has confirmed that its decision made, by Petrofac to those agents in connection
will be reviewed on a periodic basis”. with these contracts.”
The company noted that no charges have Two contracts awarded to Petrofac last year
been “brought against any Petrofac Group com- worth a total of $1.65bn – for offshore platforms
pany or any current officer or employee”, adding and gas processing facilities at the Dalma Gas
that it is “committed to operating at the highest project – were cancelled in April, with no reason
standards of ethical business practice”. given.™

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