Bain-owned company was investigated for bribing Iranian officials.
Total Has Been Doing Business In Iran Since The 1950s And Recently Resisted U.S. Calls For Isolating
The Regime. “Total won the South Pars [Iran] contract in 1997 as part of an international consortium, including
Russia’s Gazprom, Malaysia’s Petronas and Iran’s state-owned NIOC. The French group has been in Iran since
the 1950s, though recently it resisted pressure from the US to isolate the Islamic state over its controversial
nuclear enrichment programme. Total gave its 40 per cent stake in the South Pars project back to NIOC in 2004
under the terms of the deal. But it still has rights to a share of production from the gas field, equivalent to 18,000
barrels this year, below 1 per cent of its global production.” (Martin Arnold, “Total Faces Investigation Over Dollars 2bn Iran
Contract,” Financial Times, 12/20/06)
Total Is Under Investigation For Bribery In Landing 1997 “South Pars” Iranian Gas Project. “A Paris
judge has launched an investigation into allegations that Total, the French oil and gas group, paid bribes to
win a Dollars 2bn gas contract in Iran almost a decade ago. … The latest investigation stems from the
discovery of SFr100m (Dollars 82m) in two Swiss bank accounts, allegedly paid by Total to an Iranian
intermediary to help the French company’s consortium win the South Pars contract.” (Martin Arnold, “Total Faces
Investigation Over Dollars 2bn Iran Contract,” Financial Times, 12/20/06)
Total Describes Itself As “Foremost Oil Company In Partnership With Iran.” “The South Pars gas field is
the Iranian portion of what is probably the largest gas field in the world. The other part of the field, in Qatari
waters, is known as North Field. With the South Pars project, TotalFinaElf has become the foremost oil
company in partnership with Iran and has bolstered its position in the Middle East…” (Total Website, www.total.com, Accessed 2/23/07)
http://www.scribd.com/doc/78582788/McCain-2008-Oppo-File
