Factbox: Legal cases sparked by Nigerian OPL 245 oilfield license

November 12, 2020 at 11:05 am EST

LONDON (Reuters) - One of the oil industry's biggest court cases over alleged corruption in Nigeria involves an offshore oilfield licence known as OPL 245, which Royal Dutch Shell and Italy's Eni bought in 2011.

Italian prosecutors allege that most of the payment for the licence was siphoned off to politicians and middlemen.

Shell and Eni and the managers accused in the Milan court case, including Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi, have all denied any wrongdoing.

Below is a list of some of the main legal actions that have arisen from the award of OPL 245:

* Key issues related to the OPL 245 field came to light intwo separate civil suits https://www.reuters.com/article/eni-shell-nigeria-corruption/rpt-dont-neglect-to-pay-the-middleman-how-shell-and-eni-ended-up-on-trial-idUSL5N1SS0JM filed shortly after the 2011 deal by a Nigerian and a formerRussian diplomat who said they were owed millions of dollars bya Nigerian company, Malabu Oil and Gas, for arranging meetingswith Shell and Eni in relation to the licence. * Nigeria filed a case in London in 2017 against U.S. bankJPMorgan alleging negligence for its role in transferring morethan $800 million of government funds to Malabu owned by formerNigerian oil minister Dan Etete. JP Morgan has said it considersthe allegations against it "unsubstantiated and without merit." * In May 2018, Nigerian civil rights group Human &Environmental Development Agenda launched a legal case aimed atforcing the government to revoke the award of OPL 245. * In May 2018, the main trial in Milan started. Eni CEOClaudio Descalzi, former Shell exploration chief Malcolm Brindedand 11 other defendants, as well as the two companies, wereaccused by Italian prosecutors of paying bribes to secure thelicence. All the accused denied wrongdoing. * In September 2018, in a separate trial in Milan, Emeka Obiand Italian Gianluca Di Nardo were sentenced to jail in acorruption case related to OPL 245. Obi and Di Nardo appealedthe ruling. * In March 2019, Dutch prosecutors said they were preparingcriminal charges against Shell over OPL 245. * In April 2019, a Nigerian judge issued arrest warrants forDan Etete, another former minister and an Eni manager over thesale of OPL 245. Etete has denied allegations related to thecase. * In July 2020, Italian prosecutors asked a Milan court foroil majors Eni and Shell to be fined 900,000 euros each and someof their present and former executives, including Eni'sDescalzi, to be jailed. They further requested that nearly $1.1billion, the equivalent of the alleged bribes, be confiscatedfrom all the defendants. * In October 2020, Eni Chief Executive Claudio Descalzi'slawyer told a Milan court the CEO should be acquitted ofcorruption in the OPL 245 case since there is no evidence tosupport the charges. Lawyers representing Shell, Eni and theaccused executives are due to make their closing arguments inthe Milan trial in November 2020. * In November 2020, a London judge ruled that the Nigerianlawsuit against JP Morgan would go to a six-week trial at thefirst available date after Nov. 1 next year.

(Compiled by Shadia Nasralla; Editing by Edmund Blair and Jane Merriman)