The latter said in a televised address that he discouraged Hleiss, one of his childhood friends, from going to the court. These trading experts are supported by a highly skilled team of operations, shipping and financepersonnel concentrated in Athens. A letter sent to the Panamanian law firm in 1997 requested assistance organizing a fishing operation in the Turks and Caicos Islands with Cuban-flagged fishing boats.. MPs are elected to provide a voice for their constituents in Westminster, but when they also have lucrative side-jobs for private companies it raises questions over whose interests they are really serving, said Alex Runswick, senior advocacy manager at Transparency International UK. BBC World Service - The Fifth Floor, Lebanon: A web of corruption Lebanon: A web of corruption As Lebanon endures worsening blackouts and fuel shortages, BBC Arabic investigates the. Image: Cables of the electric generators in the Lebanese capital BeirutCredit: ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images, except East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa. There is no overlap of ownership or management between the two companies, a representative of ZR Energy DMCC told Le Commerce du Levant. During his time as energy minister, Hayes caused controversy by refusing to support any further expansion to onshore wind power, describing wind turbines as a terrible intrusion. The inspectorate registered many irregularities and estimated that this branchs deals with the parent company, Sonatrach, and the ministry of defence involved inflated bills. Its Havana address is Centro De Negocios Miramar, 5ta Ave. E/ 76 Y 78, Ofic. Baha Bassatne remained the sole Sonatrach broker until Abdelmoumen Ould Kaddour was appointed general manager of the company and imposed another intermediary. We are committed to acting as a model corporate citizen at all times and benefitting the local communities in which we operate. They have not been called to account for the 37 billion spent on a failing test and trace system. BB Energy registered a company in Texas, BB Energy USA LLC., in 2014. Rahmeh, like the other defendants, presented preemptory defenses during the pretrial phase, which the judiciary accepted, except related to the charge of bribery, which it upheld. Offer sent. BB Energy places emphasis on environmental protection as well as health and safety, particularly regarding oil-related storage activities. Russia has loaned Venezuela almost $16 billion since 2006, which is being repaid in oil shipments, and has also taken significant stakes in petroleum projects, meaning it already controls a large slice of the South American countrys production. Private landlords and housing associations may apply for a grant on behalf of tenants who meet the eligibility criteria. Subscribe to our newsletters and offers. She has formally requested a parliamentary investigation committee be formed to probe the matter. Billions of dollars have been siphoned off annually into political largesse and party war chests. Which groups shape the stories we see in the press; which voices are silenced, and why? When MPs have lucrative side-jobs for private firms it raises questions over whose interests they are serving. Maduro has accused U.S. President Donald Trump of waging economic war against Venezuela. The offer letter, seen by Reuters with its date redacted, said that Rosneft had agreed with PDVSA to pay BB Energy's $26 million debt to the Venezuelan state oil company and then to seek. In his self-pitying resignation letter he blamed the cruel world of politics. +44 2079380500 Company BB Energy Joey Nanaasare Current Workplace Joey Nanaasare has been working as a Business Development at BB Energy for 4 years. The testimonies suggest that this system has been in place for years, resulting in Lebanon purchasing tainted fuel under a contract signed in 2005 with a subsidiary of Algerias Sonatrach Petroleum Corporation. Johnson even survived revelations that he would rather let the bodies pile high than push forward plans for a third lockdown. MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - (This April 18 story corrects to make clear Reuters could not determine payments were made under the proposed arrangement, removes reference to Evrofinance Mosnarbank and clarifies that experts see no violation of sanctions). They escaped after senior adviser Dominic Cummings showed there was one law for the rich and another for the rest. Hayes recently opposed a plan to bring forward a ban on selling new petrol and diesel cars. Those front companies, the source added, also help Cuba carry out foreign trade transactions in U.S. dollars, forbidden by the embargo until President Barack Obama lifted the restriction earlier this year. There seems to be a tendency to prosecute managers and employees of the Lebanese Al-Zahrani Electricity Company as accomplices and facilitators of these operations; and while ZR Energys owners are being interrogated, the investigations will expand to reach the date of signing the contract with the Algerian company in 2005. RECOMMENDATIONS 2.1. BB Energy Location 12-14 Ansdell St, London, Essex, W8 5BN, United Kingdom Description Read More Industry Security agencies have warned against gangs attempting to kidnap unaccompanied children. BB Energy is not known to be involved in fracking but says that it sells oil around the world - and is one of the largest traders in the Mediterranean. In one transaction, an executive from Rosnefts Geneva trading unit said PDVSA had given its approval for Rosneft to collect payment from trading firm BB Energy for the purchase of 525,000 barrels of fuel oil loaded on Jan. 3, according to an offer letter. Like the extractives sector, the renewables industry requires substantial capital investments, which can come with substantial risks of . Judge Aoun has charged 12 people in the case, including Electricite du Liban director-general Kamal Hayek for negligence of duty, and Hleiss and director of oil at the energy ministry Aurore Feghali for bribes and negligence of duty. For its part, ZR Energy DMCC denied any involvement in illegal practices. All of which can give our clients a competitive edge. There have been unconfirmed reports that Luis Alberto Rodriguez Lopez-Calleja divorced Deborah Castro Espin in recent years, but he remains in charge of Grupo de Administracin Empresarial S.A., (GAESA) and the governments signature port of Mariel development project. Little is known inside the island about the Cuban governments companies abroad, but Havana economist Omar Everleny wrote in the early 2000s that there were more than 100 entities with the participation of Cuban capital, founded as mixed [state-private] companies or as branches of companies based on the island operating abroad in areas such as construction, agriculture, food, medicine, mining, finance and science., Everleny, recently fired from the University of Havanas Center for the Study of the Cuban Economy, noted the paradox that a country that lacks the capital for its own development has invested in other countries. The motive, he speculated, is the U.S. embargo that forced the establishment of a network of companies around the world to warehouse and market products from the sea, among them lobsters and shrimp., Today the export of products from the fishing industry is carried out through those companies, he said, adding that Cuban officials also created an international network of companies to warehouse and sell the famous Cuban cigars.. 2022 LOrient-Le Jour All rights reserved. The decision to award ZR Energy DMCC a new contract, despite its alleged involvement in the tainted fuel case, was explained by the presumption of innocence a principle applicable as long as no [verdict] was issued, an official source said. Yours faithfully, Kalim Rahman. We made a separate appeal to examine the contract with Sonatrach, but it was rejected. Lebanese judicial sources told Daraj that the investigation will not be limited to the technical specifications of fuel, but will also include the commissions Sonatrach is making. A lawyer for Panamericana, Katiuska Peado Moreno, and a former commercial attach at the Cuban embassy in London, Alejandro Gutirrez Madrigal, are listed as the beneficiaries of shares in Miramar Investment Corporation Ltd. worth $50,000. It targets Tarek Fawal, who is in charge of clearing Sonatrach BVIs transactions related to receiving and unloading fuel shipments in Lebanon, and is accused of bribery, forgery and using counterfeit documents, as well as Zaouk. It said it had purchased Venezuelan oil from Rosneft that was provided by PDVSA to the Russian company in repayment of past loans, so no money was flowing back to Maduros government. This case points to the rampant corruption in the sector. PDVSAs contemplated payment agreement with Rosneft is part of a series of methods used by Maduros government to gain access to cash, including selling Central Bank gold reserves. Laurence Robertson . This was in addition to his 49,140 directors salary. Reliance has said that in September 2012 it signed a 15-year deal to purchase up to 400,000 barrels a day of heavy crude from PDVSA. Above all, the government remains ahead in the opinion polls even though it presides over one of the worst death rates in the world. 11:07 AM | 31 Jan, 2023 . Asked about Rosnefts offer and the fuel cargo payment, a spokesman for BB Energy said the company had not completed the transaction, under guidance from legal counsel. The spoiled fuel scandal is a result of the commercial practices of the Sonatrach executives in collusion with Lebanese merchants, both of which were condoned by the relevant authorities in both Algeria and Lebanon. In 2015, BB Energy won Ecuadoran contracts for more than three million barrels of naphtha, a petroleum distillate. Yahya Mawloud, the operations manager of Middle East Power, the company operating the reciprocating engines installed in Zouk and Jiyyeh where the tainted fuel was destined for, had sounded the alarm about the poor quality of fuel in March 2020. He has also compared climate activists to radical Islam. BB Naft did business with Cuba between 1992 and 2001, trading oil for sugar for $300 million, with credit facilities at low interest rate, Coronado wrote. The justification of the Sonatrach executives for adopting this type of contract (Fronting), which is renewed every three years, was the position of the intermediary in the Lebanese market, in addition to his taking all the risks related to the deals. Somebody did and bedlam ensued. Reporting by Marianna Parraga in Mexico City; Additional reporting by Luc Cohen in Caracas, Nidhi Verma in New Delhi, Julia Payne in London; Editing by Daniel Flynn, Simon Webb,David Gaffen and Marguerita Choy. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. Sabradell was the sole owner of Resimevis Ltd, a Mossack Fonseca client since 1995 dedicated to general commerce of medical products and equipment., Whats more, a 2015 email indicated that the sole purpose of Curtdale Investments Ltd., registered in the British Virgin Islands, was to hold the shares of Ardpoint Company Inc., which in turn owned Altabana S.L. The Energy Ministry responded to criticism by explaining that resorting to large oil refineries made it possible to limit the commissions charged by intermediaries, and therefore limited the risk. And the cosy dinners, the freebie trips and holidays, the football match tickets and the fat extra salaries to deliver for corporations must all go. In one email exchange in 2011 involving a British company representing ALIMPORT the Cuban state agency that handles food and agricultural imports, valued at nearly $2 billion in 2014 that wanted to open an account with the BBVA bank, a bank employee in Great Britain asked why documents related to Miramar Investment Corporation Ltd had been notarized in Switzerland. LONDON, July 28 (Reuters) - Oil trading firm BB Energy has hired Jacques Erni as its new chief financial officer (CFO) starting Aug. 2 based in Dubai, the company said. ZR Energy DMCC wrote on its website, ZR Energy DMCC and Mr. Zaouk are incidental victims of this sinister power struggle.. BB Energy Group Holding Ltd. (DIFC) is managed by a Board of Directors comprising seven board members with five executive members and two non-executive members. Starting in the early 1990s, Cubas Ministry of Foreign Trade, through the Compaa Panamericana S.A, used Mossack Fonseca to create a string of disguised companies in Panama, the Bahamas and the British Virgin Islands that bought and sold medicines, cigars and food. ZR Group Holding SAL and ZR Energy DMCC are two separate corporate entities. According to documents, civil servants were trying to cover for the fact that Randox did not have the equipment it needed. But he was forced to U-turn to try and end the wave of sleaze allegations. His register of interests says he currently earns 50,000 in the role, for about 11 days work a year. He also said Rahme was a friend but denied he was giving Rahme protection. The document showed that PDVSA and Reliance would pay Rosneft a marketing fee equivalent to around 3 percent of the sale price, split between them. Stakeholders in renewable energy value chains include not only manufacturers, suppliers and users but also government agencies, financial institutions and private technology companies, as well as informal local networks. They include BB Energy Trading Ltd., BB Energy Management S.A., BB Energy Holdings NV., BB Energy B.V., BB Energy (Asia) Pte. The findings of another inquiry by the Electoral Commission was handed to the Tories just before the government attempted to smash up the existing standards regime. He said, There is a will to hold those involved in the scandal accountable.. At times, however, the shield of anonymity over Cuban companies is not very effective. Instead of seeking to polish and rescue parliaments reputation, Labour and the unions should be campaigning for a complete clean out of corrupted MPs. Public documents show for example that Vitol and Glencore have used intermediaries to funnel over US$31 million in bribes to corrupt Petrobras employees in the past so that they may win big contracts, along with acquiring other benefits. By April 28, Mount Lebanon Public Prosecutor Ghada Aoun said 21 people had been arrested in the case, mostly employees of the Oil Installations. MPs should take all necessary steps to avoid the perception or reality they are using their public position for private gain.. However, the dates for the first court hearings, which will be open to the public, have yet to be announced. The low-quality fuel in question was brought to Lebanon in March, under a secret contract signed with Algerian state company Sonatrach in 2005. Reliance said in its statement its purchases of Venezuelan oil from Rosneft do not lead to any payments to PDVSA. He added that in 1996 there was agreement on a triangular Russia/Cuba/Naft Trading S.A. deal to deliver Russian fuel to other markets for a number of tens of millions of US$.. So the seller had to be told that payment would be in euros from a bank in Spain, for example, and Cuba lost on the currency exchange.. The governments own Climate Change Committee warned in March that there is little, if any, room for increased fossil gas consumption if the goals of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement are to be met. The money is in our account and as yet we have not paid anyone, said the spokesman. Last month the independent Parliamentary Standards Commissioner found Paterson had breached the tame paid advocacy rules. The London branch of the Algerian Sonatrach published a statement through the Algerian News Agency, saying that whoever was presented by the media as an employee of Sonatrach is not, in fact, an employee in the company, but an independent marine agent who monitors shipments in Lebanon for the benefit of the companys branch in London. The Algerian company tried to imply that the issue is limited to the technical specifications of the fuel. Ltd., after several rounds of negotiations with a number of companies, the official added. The Cuban Embassy in Washington did not answer a comment request for this story. In 1963 they entered the oil sector in Lebanon and were primarily involved in local marketing of oil products and importation of Bitumen. Tory whips threatened MPs with the loss of local funding unless they fell into line. The upgrade of the Number 10 flat is now expected to be the subject of another inquiry. Independent MP Paula Yacoubian told LOGI that she believed Lebanese and Algerian mafias were involved in a corruption scheme tied to the fuel imports. Oil accounts for more than 90 percent of exports from the OPEC nation and the lions share of government revenues. Lucia Kassai and . The company said it saved Ghana over $2.8million when it sold the crude to the firm at a discount of $2 instead of the normal $5 a barrel. As ordinary people lost their jobs and relied on furlough, many MPs increased their income from the start of the pandemic. The arrangement would also allow the cash-strapped Venezuelan state company to receive faster payment, sometimes avoiding the usual 30-to-90 day timeframe for completing oil transactions. BB Energy is not known to be involved in fracking but says that it sells oil around the world and is one of the largest traders in the Mediterranean. The efforts to hide the Cuban governments hand in the offshore companies means that its officials, lawyers and other employees used as stand-ins could eventually become the effective beneficiaries of the shares in those companies. The CEEC was made up of local residents who are . Miqati Says Cyprus Still Waiting for Lebanon's Ratification of Maritime Border Agreement. The subsidiary subcontracted the deal to two private companies BB Energy, owned by the Bassatne family, and, beginning in 2017, Dubai-based ZR Energy DMCC, owned by Ibrahim Zaouk. Thats the case of Racuza S.A., incorporated in the British Virgin Islands. Published by Larkham Printers & Publishers Ltd, Correspondence address: PO Box 74955, London E16 9EJ | company registered in England & Wales, number: 1335756, registered address: 71-75 Shelton Street London WC2H 9JQ. Sir John's earnings put him among the most well paid MPs. 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