top of page
Trafrigura: 25 Years of Controversies and Convictions
Year
Event
Jurisdiction
Details
2001
Illegal Iraqi oil sale under UN Oil-for-Food program
USA
Trafigura pleaded guilty in 2006 to falsely declaring 500,000+ barrels of oil as UN-sanctioned; fined ~$20 million.
2003–2014
Brazilian Petrobras briberyscheme
Brazil, USA
Trafigura pleaded guilty in 2024 to paying bribes for Petrobras contracts; paid $127M + $76M to Brazilian authorities. Tied to Car Wash scandal.
2006
Ivory Coast toxic waste scandal
UK, Netherlands, Côte d'Ivoire
Probo Koala ship dumped toxic waste in Abidjan. Trafigura faced civil and criminal actions, paid over $200 million in settlements.
2009–2011
Angolan oil bribery
Switzerland
Bribes of $5M paid to Sonangol official; resulted in 2025 conviction of Trafigura and ex-COO Mike Wainwright. $145M in penalties.
2014–2020
Market manipulation & whistleblower obstruction
USA
CFTC fined Trafigura $55M in 2024 for manipulating benchmarks and impeding whistleblower communication.
2016
Dirty/toxic fuel exports to Africa
Africa
Public Eye investigation revealed "African quality" fuel with sulfur levels up to 150x EU limits exported to African nations with weaker regulations.
2023
African Court ruling on Ivory Coast victims
Africa
ACHPR ruled Ivory Coast failed to protect victims of the 2006 toxic waste dump; ordered state to establish a compensation fund.
2023–2024
$1.1B fraud loss in Mongolia
Singapore, Mongolia
Internal concealment of bad debts and fake documents by local employees. CEO called it a 'humbling' moment and pledged compliance reform.
2025
Swiss bribery conviction
Switzerland
Trafigura and Mike Wainwright convicted for bribery in Angola. Wainwright sentenced to 32 months (20 suspended); $145.6M in penalties.
2025
Indonesia Pertamina corruption
Indonesia
$17.5B corruption scandal in state oil procurement. Trafigura employees arrested; company cooperating with authorities.
2026
Trump-era Venezuela oilcontracts
Venezuela, USA
$500M contracts awarded to Trafigura despite bribery history, under Trump administration policy.
2026
Bolivia contract suspension
Bolivia
$150M fuel supply contract suspended amid investigation into alleged fuel smuggling.
2026
Ghana Bogoso-Prestea criticism
Ghana
$65M deal criticized by analysts as 'control without capital', raising governance concerns.
bottom of page