Wednesday, Jun 22, 2011
(Rewrites first paragraph, adds details from statements from Eni and Saipem in second to fourth paragraphs.)
By Sabrina Cohen
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
MILAN (Dow Jones)--Italian oil giant Eni SpA (E) and its unit Saipem SpA (SPM.MI) are under investigation into alleged bribery related to engineering contracts in Kuwait and Iraq, the companies said Wednesday, confirming an earlier press report.
In an emailed statement, both Eni and Saipem said "they believe that their position will be cleared shortly" because they are the injured parties in the case.
One Eni employee and one from Saipem are under investigation by the Milan prosecutor, the statement said.
Eni said the employee involved in the case is a non-executive manager responsible for procurement at its unit Eni Zubair, which is in charge of operations in Iraq. The Saipem employee is an executive responsible for the company's office in the Italian city of Fano and works on the Kuwaiti projects.
According to the press report, they are accused of receiving bribes from engineering companies involved in the construction of Iraqi and Kuwaiti projects via international bank accounts.
Eni was awarded the license for the development of the Zubair oil field in Iraq in October 2009. This license, according to a statement on Eni's website, was granted to a consortium that included U.S. Occidental Petroleum Corporation and Korea Gas Corp. (036460.SE).
The paper adds that among the Italian engineering and construction companies under investigation are Parma-based Gruppo Bonatti, Pesaro-based Renco SpA, as well as Elettra Energia and Elettra Progetti.
Spokespeople as well as executives of Gruppo Bonatti and Renco SpA weren't reachable for comment Wednesday.
-By Sabrina Cohen, Dow Jones Newswires; +39 02 5821 9906; sabrina.cohen@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
22-06-11 1437GMT
