Shares of Seatrium Ltd (5E2.SI) plummeted 3% in pre-market trading on Wednesday, following news that Keppel Corporation has initiated arbitration proceedings against the company for a significant claim related to a Brazilian corruption case.
The stock's sharp decline comes after Keppel announced it would start arbitration proceedings against Seatrium for a S$68.4 million (approximately $53.33 million) claim. This claim is related to Brazil's corruption crackdown, known as Operation Car Wash, and stems from indemnity terms agreed upon when Keppel divested its offshore and marine business to Seatrium (formerly Sembcorp Marine) in 2022.
Seatrium had previously made provisions of S$82.4 million to indemnify Keppel against claims related to Operation Car Wash. However, Seatrium argues that the obligation to pay Keppel expired in February of this year, and no binding agreements were signed with Brazilian authorities before that date. The dispute highlights ongoing legal and financial challenges facing Seatrium, which earlier this year agreed to pay 728.9 million Brazilian real (about $134.45 million) to Brazilian authorities as part of leniency agreements related to the corruption investigation.
