WASHINGTON, March 21 (UPI) -- Japanese trading company Marubeni Corp. said it pleaded guilty to bribing Indonesian officials to secure a power plant contract.
Marubeni said it was the target of a Justice Department investigation under the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The Japanese company said the case stemmed from its membership in a consortium involved in developing the $118 million Tarahan coal-fired power plant in Indonesia.
"Marubeni has agreed to plead guilty to violating and conspiring to violate the FCPA and to pay a fine of $88 million in order to resolve these criminal charges," it said in a statement Thursday.
The U.S. Justice Department and FBI announced the agreement Wednesday. Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department's criminal division said Marubeni was involved in scheme that spanned seven years and involved the bribery of high-ranking members of the Indonesian Parliament.
"Now Marubeni faces the consequences for its crooked business practices in Indonesia," he said in a statement.
Marubeni was a member of a consortium that secured a contract from Indonesian state electric company PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara to expand the coal-fired power plant. The project was completed in 2007.
In 2012, Marubeni agreed to pay $54.6 million to settle a similar case in the United States involving the bribery of Nigerian energy officials for a contract to build a liquefied natural gas plant.
