Financial Transparency Coalition

Global Witness Statement on Proposed Section 1504 Rule Today the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced a strong proposed rule to implement a landmark transparency law which requires US-listed oil, gas and mining companies to publish details of their payments to governments, broken down per country and per project, with no exemptions.

Former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan released a statement late last week, in advance of the Africa Progress Panel's May 10th report, Equity in Extractives. The statement is short, but sweet:

LONDON - Norwegian state-owned oil company Statoil has formally distanced itself from a U.S. oil industry lawsuit that seeks to scrap a landmark transparency and anti-corruption law established in the United States.

LONDON - As the scandal grows around a Nigerian oil deal involving Shell and Italian firm Eni who made a US$1.1 billion payment that ended up in the accounts of a company controlled by a corrupt former Nigerian Oil Minister, the Dutch government is coming under increasing pressure to stop supporting opt-outs in new EU legislation that would enable companies such as Shell to avoid having to publicly report these payments in certain circumstances.