Kenyan President William Ruto
Kenyan President William Ruto announced on Thursday the cancellation of a procurement process that would have handed control of the country’s main airport to India’s Adani Group, citing the indictment of the company’s founder in the United States.
According to U.S. prosecutors, Adani and his executives allegedly promised over $250 million in bribes to secure solar energy contracts from the Indian government between 2020 and 2024.
Ruto also ordered the termination of a $736 million, 30-year public-private partnership deal signed last month by the energy ministry with an Adani Group subsidiary to build power transmission lines, Reuters reported.
What Ruto said:
“I have directed agencies within the ministry of transport and within the ministry of energy and petroleum to immediately cancel the ongoing procurement,” Ruto said in his state of the nation address.
“I have stated in the past, and I reiterate today, that in the face of undisputed evidence or credible information on corruption, I will not hesitate to take decisive action.”
U.S. authorities revealed on Wednesday that Gautam Adani, one of the world’s wealthiest individuals, and seven other defendants allegedly paid approximately $265 million in bribes to Indian government officials.
In a statement on Thursday, an Adani Group spokesperson said the allegations are “baseless and denied.”
“The Adani Group has always upheld and is steadfastly committed to maintaining the highest standards of governance, transparency and regulatory compliance across all jurisdictions of its operations,” said the spokesperson.
Meanwhile, Kenyan Energy Minister Opiyo Wandayi asserted on Thursday that no bribery or corruption was involved in awarding the transmission lines contract to the Adani Group.
Adani’s empire faces turmoil
The charges led to a sharp selloff in pre-market trading and hit India’s markets at open. Shares of companies related to Adani, including his flagship Adani Enterprises, Adani Green Energy, and Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd., crashed 20% in under two hours of trade on Thursday.
Following the news, Adani Green Energy canceled plans to raise $600 million in US dollar-denominated bonds, the company said in a statement to the National Stock Exchange of India.