Testimony of Petrobras tanker boss Sergio Machado has put shipping deals squarely in the frame of Brazil’s “Operation Carwash” fracas, the bribery scandal that has rocked the country’s government and the state-run oil company.
In documents filed by federal prosecutors following the former Transpetro chief executive’s plea agreement, Machado details an estimated $9.7m in bribes called “propinas” that were paid following awards for bareboat charters of ships from Teekay, Lauritzen Tankers, Knutsen Shuttle Tankers, Viken Shipping and an undisclosed Greek shipowner.
