Eni backs CEO as prosecutors push for trial over Nigerian oil block

Claudio Descalzi

Italian oil major Eni has backed CEO Claudio Descalzi after sources said on Wednesday prosecutors had asked for him to be sent to trial over alleged corruption in Nigeria, Yahoo! Finance reports.

“The Board of Directors confirms its total confidence… Descalzi was not involved in any way in the conduct under investigation,” the state-controlled major said.

Earlier on Wednesday judicial sources said prosecutors had asked for Descalzi, along with 10 other people, to stand trial in a case revolving around the purchase of a Nigerian oilfield by Eni and Royal Dutch Shell for about $1.3 billion.

The prosecutors in the case also asked for Eni and Shell to be sent to trial, the sources said. The Italian inquiry is one of several under way into the acquisition of OPL-245, including current cases in Holland and Nigeria.