Cheshire company “bribing foreign officials” to sell poisonous petrol

14^th January 2013

Laetitia Woue

Laetitia Woue

14 January 2013

A Cheshire-based company convicted of bribing foreign officials is continuing in its pursuit to sell poisonous petrol, which contains dangerous chemicals well known for their harmful effects on human health, it was found today.

The multi-national firm is thought to be the last remaining producer of tetraethyl lead (TEL), a substance banned in Britain for its addictive side effects. However, despite a conviction of bribing in 2010, the company has carried on distributing the fuel to the poorest countries in the world. 

Opponents today called on the government to prohibit the UK-based company Innospec Ltd from selling and circulating the substance. Although the American company agreed to stop the production and sale of TEL by the end of last year, it continues to trade the fuel in Yemen, Algeria and Iraq. The fuel is thought to be highly poisonous for humans and to be responsible for long-term issues such as hampering the psychological development of children. 

Despite a statement released by the company that claims to be selling TEL to “a very limited number of countries for use in motor gasoline”, critics branded the practice as “outrageous” and press the government to “look urgently at what can be done to end these exports”. 

In March 2010, the multi-national pleaded guilty in the US and UK court of bribing Iraqi and Indonesian officials to boost the company profit between 2000 and 2008. 

Laetitia Woué