| Code: 34440 |

Alstom Near $۷۰۰ Million US Settlement in Bribery Case

TIN news:      French industrial giant Alstom (IW 1000/161) has agreed to pay $700 million to settle U.S. corruption charges related to bribes in Indonesia and other countries, a person familiar with the matter said Tuesday.
 
The settlement, to be announced next week, comes as U.S. conglomerate General Electric (IW 500/7) prepares to complete a deal to buy key Alstom assets.
 
The U.S. Department of Justice has accused Alstom under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) of bribing officials in Indonesia to win the $118 million Tarahan energy contract in the early 2000s in Indonesia. 
 
Alstom partnered with Japanese firm Marubeni, which in March pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the FCPA and was sentenced to pay an $88 million U.S. criminal fine.
 
Besides Marubeni, three former Alstom officials have pleaded guilty to FCPA violations in the case, while a fourth awaits trial.
 
The settlement was hinted at earlier this month by U.S. Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell, who said on December 4 that executives from Marubeni and Alstom "engaged in a multiyear scheme to pay millions of dollars to a high ranking member of the Indonesian Parliament and other officials" in exchange for the Tarahan contract. 
 
"We are actively continuing to investigate and anticipate additional law enforcement actions in the near future," states a transcript of Caldwell's remarks at an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development event in Paris to launch a report on bribery.

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