Noble Corp. is the latest major oil and gas company to be linked to the Petróleo Brasileiro’s (Petrobras) Lava Jato bribery and corruption scandal, the offshore driller revealed in a regulatory filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
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The Noble Dave Beard. Image from Keppel O&M. |
The link is from an unnamed commercial agent in Brazil that is connected to Noble Corp.’s Petrobras drilling contracts.
“We understand that this agent has represented a number of different companies in Brazil over many years, including several offshore drilling contractors,” Noble Corp. said in the filing. “This agent has pled guilty in Brazil in connection with the award of a drilling contract to a competitor and has implicated a Petrobras official as part of a wider investigation of Petrobras’ business practices. We are not aware of any improper activity by Noble in connection with contracts that Noble has entered into with Petrobras, and we have not been contacted by any authorities regarding such contracts or the investigation into Petrobras’ business practices.”
Noble Corp. currently has its Noble Dave Beard semisubmersible in operation for Petrobras offshore Brazil. The contract began in March 2010, and is scheduled to expire in late April 2016, at a day rate of $235,000.
Noble Corp. also said the company was notified by Petrobras that the Brazilian giant is currently challenging assessments by Brazilian tax authorities of withholding taxes associated with the provision of drilling rigs for its operations in Brazil during 2008 and 2009.
“Petrobras has also notified us that if Petrobras must ultimately pay such withholding taxes, it will seek reimbursement from us for the portion allocable to our drilling rigs. The amount of withholding tax that Petrobras indicates may be allocable to Noble drilling rigs is R$79 million (approximately US$19 million). We believe that our contract with Petrobras requires Petrobras to indemnify us for these withholding taxes. We will, if necessary, vigorously defend our rights,” Noble Corp. said.
Lava Jato
As US-based global energy law firm Mayer Brown calls it: “the largest corruption investigation in the world,” Lava Jato has touched several oil and gas companies, including Sevan Drilling in October, and Transocean in September.
In mid-October, Norwegian authorities performed a search and seizure of Sevan’s offices, after exposing corrupt activities with Petrobras in an independent external review conducted by Sevan Marine. The review focused on contracts between Sevan Drilling and Petrobras dated 2005-2008 for the Sevan Piranema FPSO, Sevan Driller cylindrical drilling rig and Sevan Brazil MODU.
In September, a former Petrobras executive testified to receiving payments from a Transocean representative, however, the global rig provider denied any wrongdoing.
Eduardo Costa Van Musa testified that a he believed he received payments from someone claiming to be a commercial representative of Transocean even though Musa also asserted that no such payments were necessary as Transocean had been awarded the contract for the Petrobras 10000 drillship, as it was the best technical and economic bidder in a competitive process.
Lava Jato, first revealed in 2009, is a large-scale bribe of government officials, and money laundering conducted by illegal money brokers using gas stations, hence the name “Car Wash,” or Lava Jato in Portuguese.
Since then, Lava Jato has spread throughout the oil and gas industry, and has left Petrobras’ audited financial reports reflecting a $2.1 billion write down for corruption, and a $14.8 billion impairment.
However, with all of the corruption surrounding Brazilian giant Petrobras, it has created several business opportunities for small and international businesses by opening up Brazil’s doors and leaving the playing field wide open.
Read more:
Sevan connected to Petrobras scandal
Transocean denies link to Petrobras scandal
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