Latest news with #Viaro
Yahoo
08-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Shell to pursue £400m North Sea sale despite fraud claims against buyer
Shell is forging ahead with plans to offload 5pc of Britain's North Sea gas production to an energy tycoon battling claims of fraud. The London-listed energy company has confirmed it hopes to complete the $500m (£403m) sale of 11 gas fields to Francesco Mazzagatti's start-up, Viaro Energy, by the end of this year, despite the intended buyer battling legal allegations about his conduct. Mr Mazzagatti is facing claims in the High Court that he faked bank statements, forged documents and misappropriated €143m of funds. The entrepreneur denies the allegations and has claimed they are part of a 'vexatious campaign of defamation, harassment, and extortion'. He was sued for fraud late last year by a Singaporean trading company that he previously worked for. Alliance Petrochemical Investment (API) lodged its claim against the entrepreneur in October, just three months after Shell announced the sale of its Southern North Sea assets to Viaro. The planned acquisition of Shell's oil fields, which are jointly owned by Exxon, will make Mr Mazzagatti a significant player in the North Sea. After the deal was announced last year, Viaro – which currently produces 25,000 barrels of oil a day – said it would soon control the 'backbone of the UK's energy production and security'. Mr Mazzagatti has been building a portfolio of assets in the area in recent years, including through the £250m acquisition of UK-based RockRose Energy in 2020. API has claimed in that Mr Mazzagatti misappropriated funds from the company to help finance the acquisition of RockRose. The lawsuit, which also lists Viaro's chief financial officer Dixit Dominus as a defendant, has pitted Mr Mazzagatti against API, where he was chief executive between 2018 and 2020. Mr Dominus also denies the allegations. Separately, questions have also been raised over Mr Mazzagatti's ties to an Abu Dhabi Sheikh. The Viaro boss has previously said he completed the RockRose deal with the help of a $250m facility from Sheikh Zayed bin Mohammed al Nahyan. However, the Sheikh has since claimed to have never heard of Mr Mazzagatti, as first reported by Bloomberg. A spokesman for the Sheikh last month said: 'Sheikh Zayed has no relationship whatsoever with Mr Francesco Mazzagatti, with whom he has never met, corresponded or spoken.' Mr Mazzagatti has stressed the financing is valid and repeatedly denied the allegations of fraud from API. Sources close to the businessman, who is also bringing a counter-claim against API, said the lawsuit will have no bearing on the North Sea deal with Shell. A spokesman for Viaro said: 'The API Claim, and the allegations levelled against Mr Mazzagatti, are part of a vexatious campaign of defamation, harassment, and extortion aimed at damaging his reputation. 'Mr Mazzagatti himself denies any and all accusations of wrongdoing, and there is not a single piece of credible evidence backing these allegations. 'Viaro's acquisition of Shell and ExxonMobil Southern North Sea assets is on track to be completed in 2025 as planned. It is unaffected by API's allegations and is subject to regulatory approvals.' A Shell spokesman added: 'For acquisitions and divestments we have a well-established due diligence process, including the use of external advisers. 'The sale of Shell's offshore gas assets in the UK Southern North Sea to Viaro Energy is subject to regulatory approvals and expected to complete in 2025.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Sign in to access your portfolio
BBC News
07-02-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Bacton gas terminal owner welcomes Starmer nuclear pledge
The owner of a major gas terminal said it welcomed Sir Keir Starmer's pledge to "build, baby, build" more nuclear power has been speculation that the firm which owns the Bacton terminal in Norfolk has been interested in constructing a nuclear plant said it was still in the early stages of any UK plans, but it was "pleased" that the government was "recognising the potential" of Norfolk Liberal Democrat MP, Steff Aquarone, said he was "not convinced that nuclear power is the straightforward easy option its supporters suggest". On Thursday, the prime minister said he would "take on the blockers" and change planning rules, so new nuclear reactors could be bought the Bacton terminal last year and in October said it had agreed a partnership with US firm Terrestrial Energy to develop a reactor project in the then there has been speculation from energy industry websites that it could develop a small nuclear plant at the Norfolk site. The company said it was "still in the early stages of planning an evaluation of siting, macro-economic and policy factors to confirm the viability of the nuclear plant project".It added: "Only once this initial phase is completed will Viaro and Terrestrial be in a position to complete a detailed evaluation of potential target sites, including external factors on which the realisation depends, before any concrete plans for a plant are made, for what will be a complex multi-year endeavour."Mr Aquarone said it would be better to develop hydrogen production at the Bacton processing plant, which is 20 miles (32km) from Great Yarmouth and provides about one third of the UK's gas supply."To make green hydrogen we need renewable energy, and I have today reiterated my call for more of the offshore wind infrastructure to help support the future electricity requirements at Bacton," he added. Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
