In October, the High Court of Chad ruled that Exxon Mobil must pay a fine of US$74bn for failing to meet tax obligations and withholding royalties
The record fine was ruled by the High Court of Chad ruled on 5 October and stated that Exxon Mobil must pay US$74bn in tax obligations and a fine for withholding royalties. In 2009, the consortium was ordered to pay 2 per cent in royalties on crude export, although Exxon argues that it signed the convention with royalties set at 0.2 per cent.
The government's general director of legal affairs, Fang Langou Operal, said that "That convention wasn't ratified by parliament and never signed by the head of state."
The fine exceeds the US$61.6bn delivered to BP after the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010 which killed 11 rig workers and spilt crude across the Gulf of Mexico.
Exxon Mobil are to appeal the fine, but the appeal process has been delayed, according to Thomas Dingamgoto, a lawyer for Exxon, who was interviewed in the capital, N'Djamena.
The, according to Reuters, is around seven times Chad's annual gross domestic product.
The consortium, which also includes Petronas PETRA.UL and Chadian oil company SNT owes nearly US$808mn in royalties according to the court. However, it is still unclear why the fine is so high.
