KBR unit to pay £7m in bribes case

A UK-based subsidiary of the US engineering and oil services giant Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR) is to pay £7m to settle a case with the Serious Fraud Office connected to bribery and corruption involving its parent company in Nigeria.

KBR has admitted using its UK subsidiary, MW Kellogg, to create a special purpose vehicle to bid for and run contracts on a gas project in Nigeria, which were obtained using bribes and promises of bribes. Although MW Kellogg was not involved in the criminal activity, it received dividends from the gas project's profits worth £7m, including accrued interest.

KBR itself pleaded guilty in 2009 to paying tens of millions of dollars to bribe Nigerian officials, in violation of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and paid $402m in criminal fines.