Kenya cancels proposed power transmission deal with Adani Group following US bribery indictment scandal | Company Business News-OxBig News Network

Kenyan President William Ruto said on Thursday he had ordered the cancellation of procurement process to expand the country’s main airport, in which the government was considering a proposal by India’s Adani Group.

Ruto said he had also directed the cancellation of a more than $700 million deal the energy ministry had signed with a unit of the Adani Group to construct power transmission lines.

“I have directed agencies within the ministry of transport and within the ministry of energy and petroleum to immediately cancel the ongoing procurement,” Ruto said in his state of the nation address, attributing the decision to “new information provided by investigative agencies and partner nations”.

Adani Energy Solutions, in October, signed a 30-year, $736 million public-private partnership deal with the Kenya Electrical Transmission Company. A court suspended the contract in the same month.

US authorities said chairman Gautam Adani, one of the world’s richest people, and seven other defendants agreed to pay about $265 million in bribes to Indian government officials.

According to US authorities, more than $250 million or ₹2,100 crore in bribes were promised to Indian Government officials to secure solar energy contracts. related to a renewable energy project in India. Adani and his nephew Sagar are accused of orchestrating the scheme to ensure a solar energy project and misleading investors during a $750 million bond offering, which raised about $175 million from US investors.

“Gautam and Sagar Adani were engaged in the bribery scheme during a September 2021 offering by Adani Green that raised $750 million, including approximately $175 million from US investors. The Adani Green offering materials included statements about its anti-corruption and anti-bribery efforts that were materially false or misleading,” said the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

In the indictment unsealed by federal prosecutors in New York, Adani, 62, was charged with securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, and wire fraud. One result of the US legal action is that the Adani group decided not to proceed with a proposed US dollar-denominated bond offering. The US Department of Justice said, “The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.”

Adani Group denied the allegations and said in a statement that it would seek “all possible legal recourse”.

“The allegations made by the US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission against directors of Adani Green are baseless and denied,” it said. “The Adani Group has always upheld and is steadfastly committed to maintaining the highest standards of governance, transparency and regulatory compliance across all jurisdictions of its operations. We assure our stakeholders, partners and employees that we are a law-abiding organisation, fully compliant with all laws,” it added.

Gautam Adani’s net worth plunged by over $10.5 billion, or nearly ₹88,726 crore, on Thursday, November 21, 2024, after he was allegedly indicted in New York, US, over his role in the multibillion-dollar bribery and fraud scheme.

According to the Forbes Real-Time Billionaire Index, Adani, India’s second-richest man, now commands a net worth of $59.3 billion. During today’s session, the bribery scandal triggered a rout in the Adani Group stocks. Several Adani Group shares, including those of the flagship firm Adani Enterprises, suffered massive losses and hit their lower circuits in early trade. 

Earlier on Thursday, Energy Minister Opiyo Wandayi had said there was no bribery or corruption involved in the award of the transmission lines contract.