Sonatrach trial: intelligence department wanted to know about relation between Chakib Khalil and Reda Hameche

The son of Sonatrach’s former CEO Reda Mohamed Meziane was questionned on Tuesday about a deal won by an Italian company. “How do you ask me about 140,000 DZ in return for my consultancy while Farid Bedjaoui got 197 million euros from Saipem,” he told the judge.

Judge Rekad asked Reda Meziane about his relation with Italy’s Saipem company and his consultancy contract with it.

I knew Sipem’s DirectorTullio Orsi in 2006 via Amel Zerhouni who has recently died. We met in her office. He had a problem with delay fines payment of $29 million with Sonatrach.

Orsi contacted you for the debts issue. What is your relation with this woman?

Amel Zerhouni asked to meet me. I did not know him. At that time, he had been appointed in Algeria for 6 months. Amel had a consultancy office in Hydra and dealt with many companies. I talked to my father about the problem. He answered me: “Sonatrach is not mine” and refused to solve it. On August 30^th, I organized my wedding party in Tunisia. Orsi attended it. In September, he offered me the position of his personal advisor. I started working with him in October and I had held the position for three years. I earned 140,000 DZ per month. The contract was terminated with the beginning of judicial investigation in December 2009.

When the case was divulgated and Orsi was dismissed, he said you did not have an office. That means you got the money without offering any service.

I am a freelancer. I was not a permanent employee to have an office at Saipem. I worked with Orsi.

Saipem had contracts with Sonatrach and you were its advisor.

I am Algerian and I am allowed to work at Sonatrach or any other company. Even Zerguine who succeeded my father has two sons working at Schlumberger. It has many projects in Algeria and with Sonatrach.

You said Orsi contacted you because he had a problem.

At that time, I did not work with him.

You told the examining judge that your father knew that you worked for Saipem.

No, I did not say that.

You also said you helped Saipem in choosing companies to work with.

Yes, I did. Those companies work with Sonatrach. I did not hide anything. Everyone knew about the consultancy contract. The intelligence department had the contract since 2007. I did not influence my father and I did not ask him to give any deal. I heard remarks of Sonatrach’s executives about the minister’s orders. Did I order the energy minister to give those instructions?

Don’t talk about the minister. They talk about him because they worked with him.

Investigators did not ask me about Saipem. They asked me about the relation between Mohamed Meziane’s private secretary Reda Hameche who is on the run and the former energy minister Chakib Khalil. I did not answer those questions.