FBI handed over the bribery evidence to KPK in the middle of this year, KEI Chairman Tumpa Sitorus said.
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian Energy Commission (KEI) said it knows that the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has handed over to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) evidence of bribery scandal involving Maxpower Grup Pte Ltd and a number of Indonesian officials.

The bribe money was estimated at US$750,000 in cash given by the US company around 2014 and early 2015. There was even strong indications the bribery began in 2012, KEI Chairman Tumpa Sitorus said in a news conference here on Friday.

FBI handed over the bribery evidence to KPK in the middle of this year, Tumpa said.

KPK also already received report of a number of large projects of power plants left unfinished in the second week of November, 2016, he said.

President Joko Widodo has asked the agency to investigate possible corruption in the projects.

"Therefore we ask KPK to be serious in uncovering alleged corruption in the 34 power generating projects now left idle," Tumpa said.

Maxpower Group Pte. Ltd., a company owned by Standard Chartered Private Equity, has been charged by the US authorities with bribery violating the US law on anti corruption abroad.

The US authorities accused Maxpower Pte. Ltd. of bribing a number of Indonesian officials to win the tender for the power generating projects .

In running its electric business in Indonesia, Maxpower established Navigat Energy. Navigat Energy cooperated with General Electric, which supplied power generating machines for its power projects.

Navigat Energy has operated in Jakarta, Indonesia, over the past several years. In 2014, it succeeded in establishing investment cooperation with a number of Indonesian investment companies such as Mahanusa Capital and Gunung Sewu Capital after Standard Chartered Private Equity provided an investment of US$25 million in December, 2013.

However, after learning that there was corruption, General Electric Co stopped supplying power generating machines to Navigat Energy resulting in the 34 power generating projects lying idle half finished.

President Joko Widodo has passed instruction to resume work for units still feasible and left other as scrap.

Tumpa said 12 units of the projects are already badly worth no more than iron scrap.

The Financial Service Authority (OJK) should summon Standard Chartered Indonesia to give explanation of the case, he said.(*)

Editor: Heru Purwanto
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