Lava Jato targets fraud in ship contracts by Petrobras and fulfills 25 search and seizure warrants in Rio de Janeiro (RJ), São Paulo (SP) and Sergipe

Lava Jato targets fraud in a billion-dollar contracting process by Petrobras for the supply of line launchers (PLSV) by companies in the Seadrill Groups. On September 10th, the Petrobras issued a note in which it said it supported the Lava Jato investigation regarding a fraud involving BRL 100 million in foreign exchange operations contracted by the state-owned company

Read other Operation Lava Jato mandates that occurred this year

• Lava Jato: Technip returns more than R$ 265 million to Petrobras
• Operation Lava Jato arrests shipyard owners in Rio de Janeiro due to fraud in the construction of Transpetro ships
• Construtora Techint is accused by Lava Jato of corruption at Petrobras

This Wednesday (September 23) the Federal Police execute 09 search and seizure warrants, twenty-two in Rio de Janeiro, one in São Paulo and two in Sergipe.

The operation called Boeman is the 75th phase of Lava Jato and investigates contracts signed by companies from the Seadrill Group with Petrobras. The crimes investigated in the operation are corruption and money laundering.

The current phase investigates whether the maritime shipping company Sapura (which in Brazil is a joint venture of Sapura Energy, from Malaysia, and the Seadrill group), paid US$ 40 million in bribes for a US$ 2,7 billion contract with Petrobras involving the supply of three PLSV line launchers – created to operate on the high seas, in waters with a depth of up to 3 meters.

According to the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF), the contract was signed in 2011 for the construction and subsequent use in the charter of the ships for eight years and is in force today.

The investigation had the collaboration of Dutch authorities, who investigated irregularities in the supply of line-laying ships. The MPF says that the case motivated autonomous investigations, "which generated the request for searches by Dutch authorities also carried out by the warrants served on today's date".

According to the PF, the foreign companies that won the bid subsequently subcontracted a Dutch company to perform the service, which was represented by one of the investigated Brazilian businessmen, and who, due to the spurious agreements, also made illicit payments to those involved. .

Statement by Petrobras and Seadrill

In a note, Petrobras said that it has been collaborating with the investigations since 2014, and acts as co-author of the Federal Public Ministry and the Union in 18 actions of administrative improbity in progress, in addition to being assistant to the prosecution in 71 criminal actions.

"It should be noted that Petrobras has already received more than R$ 4,6 billion in compensation, including amounts that were repatriated from Switzerland by Brazilian public authorities", says an excerpt from the note.

Already sapura informed that he “made himself available” for the investigation. “So far, however, the company has not had access to information on the content of the investigations that triggered the operation and will remain at the disposal of the authorities to provide any clarifications that may be necessary”, he said in a note.