New York/New Delhi: Billionaire Gautam Adani has been charged by US prosecutors over his role in an alleged years-long scheme to pay USD 250 million bribe to Indian officials in exchange for favourable terms for solar power contracts.
US prosecutors charged Adani, 62, his nephew Sagar and other defendants for paying over USD 250 million in bribes between 2020 and 2024 to Indian government officials to win solar energy contracts on terms that could potentially bring in more than USD 2 billion in profit.
This, they alleged, was concealed from the US banks and investors from whom the Adani group raised billions of dollars for the project.
The charges, filed on Wednesday, target Gautam Adani, 62, his nephew Sagar Adani, 30, executives from Adani Green Energy Ltd, and Cyril Cabanes, an executive at Azure Power Global Ltd. They are accused of conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud, along with substantive securities fraud, for allegedly orchestrating a multi-billion-dollar scheme to secure funds from US investors and global financial institutions through false and misleading statements.
Adani Green Energy did not immediately respond to the development.
According to the SEC, the bribery scheme aimed to benefit renewable energy companies Adani Green and Azure Power by facilitating their involvement in a multi-billion-dollar solar energy project awarded by the Indian government.
The charges include violations of federal securities laws’ antifraud provisions, with the SEC seeking permanent injunctions, civil penalties, and bans on serving as officers or directors.
The SEC’s statement highlighted that Adani Green raised over $175 million from US investors during the alleged scheme, while Azure Power’s stock was actively traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
Simultaneously, the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York unsealed criminal charges against Adani and Sagar Adani, Cabanes, and others linked to Adani Green and Azure Power.
The federal indictment unsealed in a federal court in Brooklyn charges five others with conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in connection with the bribery scheme, involving one of the world’s largest solar energy projects.
Federal prosecutors claim that between 2020 and 2024, Adani and his associates paid over USD 250 million in bribes to obtain solar energy contracts worth more than USD 2 billion in projected profits after tax over an approximately 20-year period.
Adani and seven other executives are accused of bribing Indian government officials to secure lucrative contracts and defrauding investors by making false statements about bribery and corruption.
They also allegedly tried to obstruct investigations, according to FBI Assistant Director James Dennehy.
“This indictment alleges schemes to pay over USD 250 million in bribes to Indian government officials, to lie to investors and banks to raise billions of dollars, and to obstruct justice,” stated Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lisa H Miller.
“These offences were allegedly committed by senior executives and directors to obtain and finance massive state energy supply contracts through corruption and fraud at the expense of US investors,” she added.
The Department of Justice alleged that on several occasions, Adani personally met with an Indian government official to advance the bribery scheme, and the defendants held in-person meetings with each other to discuss aspects of its execution.
“The defendants frequently discussed their efforts in furtherance of the Bribery Scheme, including through an electronic messaging application,” it alleged.
