SBM Offshore has been rocked with news the Fifth Chamber of the Brazilian Federal Prosecutor Service has not approved the leniency agreement signed by Brazilian authorities, Petrobras and SBM Offshore in mid-July. The Dutch company said it is seeking clarification on the decision and will update the market accordingly.
Under the July agreement SBM had agreed to pay fines and cooperate in the ongoing probe into corruption surrounding Petrobras contracts. In return Amsterdam-based SBM was set to be exempt from new lawsuits relating to the case and it was supposed to be eligible to bid again for Petrobras contracts. All this leniency now looks up in the air.
SBM was one of the first overseas companies exposed in the “bribes-for-inflated-contracts” scheme that has engulfed Brazil’s state oil firm. It was accused of paying millions of dollars in bribes between 1996 and 2012 in return for Petrobras contracts.
