Glencore pays US$300M fine in bribery case

Commodities company Glencore said Monday that it has reached an agreement with the Democratic Republic of Congo to pay $180 million over bribery allegations spanning from 2007 to 2018. (File)

Global Mining Giant Glencore has paid more than US$300 million in fines for bribing government officials in several African countries.

According to a BNN report this week, the company was subject to an investigation by the UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO), which showed Glencore paid more than $28 million in bribes across five African countries over five years to 2016.

“Glencore traders hand delivered large quantities of cash to government officials, they sought to profit from political turmoil, and they inserted themselves into government-to-government deals that had been negotiated at preferential rates,” the story said.

In one example, Glencore officials arrived in South Sudan in July 2011 just days after that country became independent.

“Two other employees arrived in the capital Juba with $800,000 in cash a few days later,” the story said.

“They said it was for ‘opening office in South Sudan, cash for office infrastructure, salaries, cars etc.,’ but Glencore’s local agent in fact used some of it to pay bribes.”

The SFO case outlined how in Nigeria, Glencore paid millions of dollars to an intermediary that were used to bribe officials at the state oil company, using sham contracts to disguise the true purpose of the payments. The Nigerian agent also transported cash by private jet to Cameroon. There a Glencore trader used it to bribe officials at the state oil and gas company and the state refinery.

In a statement, Glencore chair Kalidas Madhavpeddi described the incidents as “inexcusable and has no place in Glencore.”

“The company is committed to operating a company that creates value for all stakeholders by operating transparently under a well-defined set of values, with openness and integrity at the forefront,” Madhavpeddi said.

“The company has taken significant action towards implementing a world-class ethics and compliance program built around risk assessment, policies, procedures, standards and guidelines based on international best practice, associated training and awareness initiatives as well as monitoring systems.”

In May of this year, Glencore paid US$1.186 billion after being convicted of corrupt practices in dealing with foreign governments.

It was found guilty of manipulating commodity prices in a multi-year scheme to manipulate fuel oil prices at two of the busiest commercial shipping ports in the U.S.