OIL services giant Petrofac has won a contract worth around $95 milllion (£74m) to support Siccar Point’s exploration drive West of Shetland as it emerged the firm is facing the prospect of a £400 million legal claim.
Read more: Exploration back on agenda in North Sea with all eyes on West of Shetland
Innsworth Litigation Funding said it was preparing to fund proceedings against Petrofac arising out of an alleged bribery scandal.
The claim under consideration relates to losses suffered by Petrofac shareholders following the fall in the company’s share price since it was announced in May 2017 that the Serious Fraud Office was investigating the firm for suspected bribery, corruption and money laundering.
Read more: Petrofac facing investor action
Last week David Lufkin, the former global head of sales at Petrofac, pleaded guilty to offering corrupt payments in an attempt to secure contracts in Saudi Arabia worth 3.5 billion US dollars (£2.7 billion) and contracts in Iraq worth $730 million (£566 million).
Petrofac noted then that no charges had been brought against any group company, current officers, employees or board members.
Rene Medori, chairman of Petrofac, said at the time: “The SFO has chosen to bring charges against a former employee of a subsidiary company.
“It has deliberately not chosen to charge any group company or any other officer or employee. In the absence of any charge or credible evidence, Petrofac intends as a matter of policy to stand by its employees.
“Petrofac has policies and procedures in place designed to ensure that we operate at the highest levels of compliance and ethics.”
Read more: Petrofac losses on Shetland gas terminal contract spiral to $610m
Petrofac made no comment on the statement by Innsworth, which helps fund lawsuits and then takes a portion of the damages if successful. Backed by activist investor Elliott, Innsworth is also behind a shareholder claim against car giant Volkswagen over the emissions scandal.
Petrofac will provide well engineering services for Siccar Point, whose plans have generated keen interest in the oil and gas industry amid growing conviction that big finds could be made in the relatively under-explored waters off Shetland.
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