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FBI search warrants served in March 2023

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TotalEnergies buys solar assets in September 2024

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Adani denies US allegations

By America Hernandez

PARIS, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Gautam and Sagar Adani knew

their renewable energy company was under U.S. investigation for

suspected bribery when they sold part of India's largest solar

park to France's TotalEnergies, prosecutors allege in legal

documents reviewed by Reuters.

TotalEnergies did not immediately respond to a request for

comment on Friday on whether it knew the Adanis were being

probed by U.S authorities over an alleged bribery and fraud

scheme when it bought the Khavda solar stake.

U.S. prosecutors on Thursday charged eight people -

including Indian tycoon Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani and

the former CEO of Adani Green Energy Limited - with promising

and then making improper payments to Indian officials between

July 2021 and 2024 to ensure the solar project's success.

In September 2024, TotalEneriges paid $444 million into a

joint venture with Adani Green Energy for a 50% stake in 1.15

gigawatts of solar installations at the Khavda solar park - the

project at the heart of the bribery charges.

The French oil and gas company is not named in the criminal

case. The Adani Group has called the allegations baseless. It

did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment about

this story.

According to the U.S. indictment, FBI special agents served

Adani Green Energy Executive Director Sagar Adani with a search

warrant and grand jury subpoena in March 2023 - more than a year

before the sale to TotalEnergies. These documents identified

Adani Green Energy, its former CEO Vneet Jaain, and chairman

Gautam Adani as under investigation for alleged bribery to

obtain business advantages for the firm.

TotalEnergies bought a 20% stake in Adani Green Energy in

January 2021 - after the Indian company won what was then the

world's largest solar order, and just months before the alleged

payments to officials began.

Sangkaran Ratnam, TotalEnergies' country chair for India and

the French firm's nominee to the board of directors of Adani

Green Energy, did not respond to a request for comment on

whether he had been aware of the investigation at the time

TotalEnergies bought the stake in the Khavda assets.