MILAN, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Shell's former
international upstream head Malcolm Brinded had no reason to
think that the awarding of the OPL-245 oilfield license in
Nigeria was illegal, his lawyer said on Wednesday.
In a court hearing in Milan, Marco Calleri said his client
believed the deal would bring money and benefits to Nigeria and
its government and that it was lawful and correct.
"I stand by my view that there is absolutely no basis for
the charges against me," Brinded said in a comment sent by
email.
Brinded is one of four former Shell executives caught up in
a long-running bribery case revolving around the purchase of the
OPL 245 offshore field in 2011 for about $1.3 billion.
Prosecutors allege that about $1.1 billion of that was
siphoned off to politicians and middlemen.
Eni, Shell and a series of other present and former
executives, including Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi, are
also standing trial in the case.
The companies and all those involved deny any wrongdoing.
(Reporting by Alfredo Faieta; writing by Stephen Jewkes;
Editing by Steve Orlofsky)
