TotalEnergies Stops Business With Adani After US Bribery Charges

While TotalEnergies’ plans for future investment in Adani Group firms were not known, the announcement of a pause adds to the criticism the $143-billion Indian conglomerate is facing about disclosure standards, which may lead to closer scrutiny by other investors.

“Until such time when the accusations against the Adani group individuals and their consequences have been clarified, TotalEnergies will not make any new financial contribution as part of its investments in the Adani group of companies,” the French company said.

The U.S. prosecutors’ bribery charges related to alleged payments to obtain contracts that could yield $2 billion of profit over 20 years. The charges also included making misleading statements to the public despite being made aware of the U.S. investigation in 2023.

The Adani Group has said the accusations as well as those levelled by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in a parallel civil case are baseless and that it will seek “all possible legal recourse”.

Adani did not immediately respond to a request for comment on TotalEnergies’ statement.

The agency said that no funds have yet been disbursed under the loan commitment.

PARLIAMENT DISRUPTED

In India, opposition parties, who have consistently targeted Adani for what they say is his proximity to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, disrupted both houses of parliament seeking a discussion on the Adani allegations.

“The first step the government should take is to have a detailed discussion on the Adani saga which has the potential of tarnishing India’s image at the global stage,” Mallikarjun Kharge, president of the main opposition Congress party, posted on X.

Jagdeep Dhankhar, the Vice President of India and the chairman of the upper house, said he had received 13 notices from lawmakers demanding a discussion on the Adani issue but he could not allow them as they did not conform to the rules.

Dhankhar suspended the chamber for the day as lawmakers insisted on their demand, with similar scenes playing out in the lower house.

Indian opposition parties have in the past accused Modi’s government of protecting Gautam Adani and his businesses, charges both deny.

Modi’s opponents say he has longstanding ties with Adani, going back nearly two decades to when Modi was chief minister of the western state of Gujarat, from where Adani also comes.

They accuse the government of favouring the group in business deals, charges the government has rejected as “wild allegations”.

The government has not commented on the indictment but Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has said that it is for the Adani Group to deal with and defend itself and that the law will take its course.

MIXED DAY FOR ADANI STOCKS

Outside parliament, dozens of members and supporters of the youth wing of Congress marched in protest, carrying placards demanding Adani’s arrest and shouting slogans linking him to Modi.

The crisis is the second in two years to hit the Adani group, which was last year accused by short seller Hindenburg Research of improperly using offshore tax havens. The company denied those claims.

The disruption in parliament came as investors cut their exposure to the conglomerate, depressing Adani dollar bond prices.