DOJ: Asante Berko discussed $1m payment to Power Minister in Aksa deal

Former Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) Managing Director Asante Kwaku Berko and his alleged co-conspirators discussed a $1 million payment to Ghana's then-Power Minister, Dr Kwabena Donkor, as part of efforts to secure government approvals for a power plant project, according to the US Department of Justice (DOJ).

The alleged payment was discussed in April 2015 during negotiations between the Government of Ghana and Turkish energy company Aksa Enerji Uretim A.S. over the construction and financing of the plant.

According to US prosecutors, Berko was involved in the transaction while serving as an Executive Director in the Investment Banking Division of Goldman Sachs, where Aksa was a client.

The DOJ said Donkor was responsible for securing key approvals needed for the project to proceed. Berko and the others also allegedly discussed a $250,000 payment to the minister's senior adviser.

The discussions formed part of a wider bribery scheme which, according to prosecutors, involved more than $1 million in payments to Ghanaian government officials to secure approvals for Aksa to build and operate the power plant.

Donkor's resignation

The alleged payment discussions took place during Ghana's prolonged electricity crisis, which had become a major political and economic issue during President John Mahama's first full term.

Dr Kwabena Donkor had pledged to resign if he failed to resolve the power crisis by December 31, 2015.

He subsequently stepped down as Power Minister in January 2016, keeping his pledge after failing to resolve the crisis, which had persisted for about three years.

Meanwhile, according to the DOJ, Parliament approved the Aksa power project agreement in July 2015. Prosecutors said discussions about further payments continued in August 2015, including an alleged $46,000 payment to members of Parliament who had ratified the agreement. Berko convicted in US

Berko has since been convicted by a US federal jury on charges of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), violating the FCPA and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

He faces up to 30 years in prison and has been remanded pending sentencing.

The US authorities have not identified the Ghanaian officials allegedly involved in the payments in their latest conviction announcement.