ABB Fined $4.3 Million by Swiss Attorney General for South African Bribery Case
December 02 2022 - 5:13AM
Dow Jones News
By Pierre Bertrand
ABB Ltd. on Friday was fined 4 million Swiss francs ($4.3
million) by the Swiss attorney general's office for its role in
bribery payments linked to the construction of a coal-fired power
plant in South Africa.
The Swiss attorney general said ABB Management Services Ltd.
acknowledged not having done enough to prevent bribery payments to
foreign officials in South Africa.
"In concrete terms, various ABB employees set up from 2013 on a
bribery scheme in order to obtain orders, through excessive
payments to subcontractors, for the construction of a coal-fired
power plant in South Africa," the office said in a statement.
Through the use of at least CHF1.3 million in bribes, ABB in South
Africa was able secure orders worth at least $200 million, the
office said.
The fine resolves the Swiss criminal investigation into the
technology group.
ABB said Friday the penalty is included in the approximately
$325 million provision it made earlier this year.
"ABB has reached a full and final settlement with the Office of
the Attorney General of Switzerland related to the legacy Kusile
project in South Africa, awarded in 2015," the company said.
On Thursday, the company agreed to pay approximately $150
million as part of a settlement with South Africa's National
Prosecuting Authority relating to investigations connected to the
company's work on the Kusile power plant. In 2015, ABB was awarded
a contract worth more than $160 million for control and
instrumentation systems at the plant, which is run by South African
energy utility Eskom.
In the U.S., the Department of Justice and the Securities and
Exchange Commission are expected to also resolve their
investigations on Friday into the actions of ABB related to its
work in South Africa, the Swiss attorney general's office said.
Write to Pierre Bertrand at pierre.bertrand@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 02, 2022 05:58 ET (10:58 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
ABB (NYSE:ABB)
Historical Stock Chart
From Nov 2024 to Dec 2024
ABB (NYSE:ABB)
Historical Stock Chart
From Dec 2023 to Dec 2024
