Charlotte’s Albemarle Corp has just agreed to pay $218 million to settle claims of bribing government officials in multiple countries.
In their settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Albemarle admitted that between 2009 and 2017, they bribed numerous government officials to secure business with state-owned oil refineries in Vietnam, Indonesia, and India, profiting roughly $98.5 million from the bribes.
“Albemarle earned nearly $100 million by participating in schemes to pay bribes to government officials in multiple countries,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division in a press release. “As today’s announcement makes clear, the Justice Department will work tirelessly with our partners in the ongoing fight against international corruption. Today’s resolution also demonstrates the real benefits that companies can receive if they self-disclose misconduct, substantially cooperate, and extensively remediate.”
Albemarle produces specialty chemicals, including catalysts for refining and lithium for electric vehicle batteries. They currently employ about 150 employees at their Kings Mountain operations center and about 130 employees at their Charlotte corporate headquarters.
