Soros calls Big Oil to account Terry Macalister and Charlotte Denny Friday June 14, 2002 The Guardian
Billionaire financier George Soros yesterday called on Britain, the US and France to force oil companies to disclose payments to governments as part of a global campaign to stamp out widespread corruption in developing countries with vast mineral resources. Backed by a range of non-governmental organisations such as Amnesty, Christian Aid and Save the Children, Mr Soros claimed $1bn a year of Angolan oil revenues had "gone missing" from government coffers since 1997 and it was up to western regulators to step in. "They [oil majors] need to have their arms twisted for their own good," he argued. Last night British groups moved to head off the criticism from the speculator-turned- philanthropist, saying they would gladly disclose more details of payments to foreign governments in the developing world - if required by stock exchanges. Shell admitted that few such payments were made public but insisted it had no difficulty with transparency as long as it did not conflict with confidentiality clauses in contracts. BP said it had already been open about payments it had made to governments in countries such as Angola, although it was roundly criticised by ministers there. US-based oil groups are said to have already expressed their concern about Mr Soros's initiative. Campaigners are calling on finance ministers in leading industrial countries to introduce changes in stock market regulations to require resource companies to report payments to governments as a condition of being listed. This, they argue, would improve competitiveness, preventing more principled and transparent companies from being undercut by less scrupulous rivals. It would eliminate concerns about confidentiality clauses and address the problem of non-transparency in all countries of operation. "Secrecy over state revenues encourages ruling elites to mismanage and misappropriate money rather than invest it in long term development," argued Mr Soros, launching the campaign at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.
