Rosneft's USD 250 million advisory fee to an unnamed consultant for Kurdistan oil deals and the inquiry ordered by the Region's Public Prosecution (from 2017 to 2020)
Bloomberg reported on 2 March 2020 that Rosneft Trading SA, the Geneva-based trading arm of Russia's state oil company Rosneft, paid an unnamed external consultant an advisory fee of USD 250 million in 2017 and 2018 for services relating to Rosneft's proposed concession agreement and production sharing contracts with the Kurdistan Regional Government. The fee was disclosed in the 2019 accounts of RN Middle East Pte Ltd in Singapore, which said it was in substance payable on a success basis. In 2017 and 2018 Rosneft advanced up to USD 3 billion to the KRG against future oil, turned USD 1.8 billion of it into a 60 percent stake in the Region's export pipeline and invested in five exploration blocks; Natural Resources Minister Ashti Hawrami welcomed the 2017 deal. On 29 March 2020 Prime Minister Masrour Barzani asked the Region's Public Prosecution to investigate claims that USD 250 million had been received as a bribe from Rosneft, and the Public Prosecution announced a committee to investigate them, together with reports that a Lebanese bank would hold USD 1 billion of the Region's money. No result has been published.
- Period
- From February 2017 to March 2020
- Sector
- Kurdistan RegionOil contracts with foreign companies
- Kind of case
- Media investigation
- Jurisdiction
- Kurdistan Region
How the money moved, according to the sources
A large success fee paid by a foreign oil company to an undisclosed consultant in connection with government oil contracts and pipeline deals; the recipient and any onward payments are unknown.
What happened
The Public Prosecution announced its committee on 29 March 2020. No findings have been published as of 19 October 2026 and no one has been charged.
Open questions
- Who the consultant was and whether any official or relative of an official benefited.
- What the Public Prosecution's committee found.
- Whether authorities in Russia, Switzerland or Singapore examined the payment.
People and companies
| Name | Role in the case | Legal status | Detail | As of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| External consultant paid by Rosneft Trading SA (unnamed) المستشار الخارجي الذي دفعت له روسنفت تريدينغ (لم يُكشف اسمه) | Recipient of a USD 250 million advisory fee for services relating to Rosneft's contracts with the KRG (2017 to 2018) | Under investigation | Paid USD 250 million by Rosneft Trading SA in 2017 and 2018, according to company accounts reported by Bloomberg. On 29 March 2020 the Public Prosecution of the Kurdistan Region formed a committee to investigate claims that this sum was a bribe. The recipient has not been identified and no result has been published. | 19 October 2026 |
| Ashti Hawrami آشتي هورامي | KRG Minister of Natural Resources; welcomed the 2017 crude supply deal with Rosneft | Not charged as of the date of writing | Not charged as of the date of writing. Named by Bloomberg as the minister who welcomed Rosneft's February 2017 deal with the KRG. The sources make no accusation against him concerning the USD 250 million advisory fee, which is the subject of the Public Prosecution's inquiry of March 2020. | 19 October 2026 |
| Rosneft شركة روسنفت | Russian state oil company; buyer of Kurdistan crude, majority owner of the Region's export pipeline and investor in five blocks (2017 to 2018) | Not charged as of the date of writing | Not charged as of the date of writing. Rosneft said its deals are included in audited consolidated accounts. The KRG Public Prosecution's committee of 29 March 2020 looked into claims about the USD 250 million fee paid by its subsidiary; no finding against the company has been published. | 19 October 2026 |
| Rosneft Trading SA شركة روسنفت تريدينغ | Geneva-based trading unit of Rosneft that paid the USD 250 million advisory fee in 2017 and 2018 | Not charged as of the date of writing | Not charged as of the date of writing. According to the 2019 accounts of RN Middle East Pte Ltd reported by Bloomberg, it entered into an advisory agreement with an external consultant in 2017 and paid the USD 250 million fee in full in 2017 and 2018. The payment is the subject of the KRG Public Prosecution's March 2020 inquiry; no finding has been published. | 19 October 2026 |
Sources
- Kurdistan2429 March 2020Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
ادعاء كوردستان يشكل لجنة تحقيق بمزاعم "رشوة روسنفت" و"المليار المحجوز"
Original addressأعلن الادعاء العام في إقليم كوردستان الأحد تشكيل لجنة للتحقيق في المزاعم التي تتحدث عن رشوة بقيمة 250 مليون دولار قدمتها شركة روسنفت
- Kurdistan2429 March 2020Official statement reported by the mediaTier B
كوردستان تضيق الخناق على الفساد وتتحرى عن "رشوة روسنفت"
Original addressيؤكد رئيس حكومة إقليم كوردستان مسرور بارزاني على ضرورة إجراء رئاسة الادعاء العام تحقيقاً وتحرياً بشأن تلك المزاعم التي تتحدث عن تسلم 250 مليون دولار كرشوة من شركة روسنفت
- Bloomberg (republished by the Iraqi Economists Network)2 March 2020Press reportTier D
Russia's State Oil Company Paid Mystery Consultant $250 Million in Iraq Deal
Original addressThe advisory fee was agreed at US$250,000,000 and was fully paid by RTSA in 2017 and 2018.
- Iraq Business News30 March 2020Press reportTier D
KRG to Investigate Alleged $250m payment from Rosneft?
Original addresshas reportedly called for the public prosecutor to launch an investigation into allegations that Russian state oil company Rosneft paid $250 million to a consultant to secure deals in Iraqi Kurdistan.