Cambodia's Minister for Water Resources, Lim Kean Hor, told the National Assembly BHP had paid $US2.5 million to the government to secure a bauxite mining concession. ''Lim Kean Hor is reported to have described this payment as 'tea money', an unofficial payment in Cambodia''By Barry Fitzgerald and Mathew Murphy
The Sydney Morning Herald
BHP BILLITON'S blue-chip reputation has been tarnished by a foreign bribes scandal, believed to involve the group's abandoned bauxite exploration project in Cambodia where the payment of ''tea money'' to gain access to exploration ground is rife.
The scandal has been under investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission since August but only became ominous for BHP in a reputational sense yesterday when the Australian resources giant admitted the bribery claims could have merit.
BHP disclosed that its own internal investigation - a response to inquiries from the SEC - had uncovered evidence ''regarding possible violations of applicable anti-corruption laws involving interactions with government officials''.
It did not name the country or the now abandoned projects involved. While Cambodia was the popular tip by the non-government organisations that monitor the behaviour of the global miners in Third World countries, a nickel project in the Philippines was also mentioned by the organisations.
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