A BP spokeswoman declined to comment on the matter.
BP isn’t accused of wrongdoing. The oil major was named in court filings made by local units of CIMB Bank Bhd. and Natixis SA against Hontop Energy (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. and Sugih Energy International Pte. Ltd. -- now renamed as Aeturnum Energy International Pte Ltd. The banks claimed they found themselves in a $192 million hole from funding crude oil deals involving these companies.
Between late 2019 and early this year, lenders said in filings in the High Court of Singapore that they issued letters of credit and paid out millions of dollars on behalf of Hontop, with Sugih as the beneficiary. The banks claimed they agreed to the letters of credit after Hontop showed them documentation including supposedly binding contracts to on-sell the oil to BP. When the banks went to collect from BP, however, the oil major said it had never agreed to some of the purchases, according to the claims.
In one such transaction, at least six BP staff were identified in emailed deal recaps between Hontop and the oil major, filings show.
