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Tenaris Fined $78 Million After Bribery Investigation

Written by Laura Miller

June 3, 2022

Tenaris will pay a hefty fine to the US Securities and Exchange Commission after a bribery investigation in which the global pipe producer neither admitted nor denied the allegations.

The fine amounts to more than $78.1 million — $53.1 million for disgorgement and prejudgement interest and $25 million for a civil penalty.

The investigation looked into allegedly improper payments made between 2008 and 2013 by a manager of Brazilian state-owned energy company Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras) to the benefit of Tenaris’s Brazilian subsidiary Confab Industrial SA.

Tenaris

Tenaris notified the SEC and the US Department of Justice (DOJ) of the matter in 2016 at its own discretion. An internal investigation by the company found no evidence of improper payments by any Tenaris directors, officers, or employees, as the improper payments were made between a Petrobas official and a third party working for Confab, it said. Confab apparently did not receive any unfair commercial benefits or advantages from the payments.

“Tenaris and its affiliates are committed to transparency and integrity based on the highest ethical standards and strict compliance with the laws and regulations of all jurisdictions in which they operate. As the SEC recognized in its order, Tenaris has implemented a range of process improvements and remediation actions as part of its continuous focus on enhanced compliance. Its remedial measures have included terminating its commercial agents in Brazil and significantly reducing its use of commercial agents worldwide,” the company said in a statement.

The DOJ conducted a parallel inquiry into the bribery allegations but has closed its investigation without taking any action.

By Laura Miller, Laura@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Laura Miller

Laura Miller is a reporter and editor for Steel Market Update. She has held a variety of positions within the steel industry since 2007, including reporting and editing for Steel Business Briefing/Platts, the Association for Iron and Steel Technology, and Kallanish Commodities, as well as marketing for what was then known as ThyssenKrupp Steel USA (now AM/NS Calvert). After a five-year hiatus working across other industries, she returned to steel in 2021 and has covered the flat rolled, tubular, and trade areas of the industry. She is a member of the Association of Women in the Metal Industries and a past-president of the AWMI Pittsburgh Chapter. She holds a BA in Latin American Studies from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. She can be reached at laura@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7869.

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