Top Sonatrach managers involved in shady deals with French company

The court of Oran, western Algeria, will start hearing as from next September a number of managers at the Algerian Hydrocarbons Company (Sonatrach) involved in shady deals estimated at several million Euros with a French company.

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• Five top managers were remanded in custody on charges of sealing illegal contracts.
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• According to information collected by Echourok from sources close to the case, the investigation carried out by the security forces revealed that four deals were sealed through mutual agreements infringing thus, regulations.
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• Moreover, the company has sealed a 21 million Euros contract with a French company to supply the port of Arzew, Oran, with rubber pipes used for loading oil in big oil tankers.
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• The managers were in a rat-race to acquire new pipes because the exiting ones were worn out ( the average shelf life is limited to four years), in addition to a contract with a value of 7 million Euros to acquire floaters and surveillance cameras to secure the port from natural disasters and other dangers.
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• The hearing sessions are due to shed light on other shady practices surrounding the contracts sealed with foreign companies.
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• It should be noted that the same court has sentenced a top manager at the same company to three years imprisonment on charges of sealing a shady contract for the acquisition of office stationeries for the downstream activities’ headquarter.
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