Guiné Equatorial, Diario Rombe, Espanhol

The Bata Modular Refinery project, presented in September 2020 by Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, then Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons, and currently led by his successor, Antonio Oburu Ondo, Minister of Hydrocarbons and Mining Development, is shrouded in a veil of opacity that raises serious doubts about its true purpose. Although touted as a strategy to strengthen Equatorial Guinea’s energy security, the lack of transparency in its financing and the involvement of foreign actors in the operation of the project call into question its intentions.

The project aims to produce refined fuels such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), gasoline, diesel, and aviation kerosene. However, key details about its implementation—such as its operational structure, financing, and the companies involved—remain unclear. This growing uncertainty raises concerns about the potential hidden interests behind the initiative.

Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, the Vice President of the Government and self-styled advocate for transparency, has promoted the refinery as «one of the major projects through which the Government is betting on the country’s economic diversification.» However, the fact that Consolidated International Refinery Development Limited (CIRDL), a Hong Kong-based company with no prior experience in the energy sector, has secured a financing deal with the Government raises significant doubts. CIRDL’s lack of track record and credibility in the energy field sparks suspicions about its ability to execute such a large-scale project.

The inevitable question arises: Is the Bata Refinery truly intended to benefit Equatorial Guinea, or is it being used as a façade for local leaders and questionable foreign businessmen, particularly of Nigerian origin, to take control of the country’s natural resources indefinitely? This investigative article by Diario Rombe delves into the complex and opaque dynamics surrounding the Bata Refinery, a project that, far from representing a model of progress, could instead reflect the corrupt power structures that have shaped Equatorial Guinea’s recent history.

A opaque agreement with more questions than answers

On August 16, 2022, Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue announced, in a press conference at the People’s Palace, the signing of the «Heads of Agreement» between Gepetrol—then led by Antonio Oburu Ondo—and the mysterious Hong Kong-based company Consolidated International Refinery Development Limited (CIRDL). The government presented this agreement as a crucial step for the development of Equatorial Guinea, yet details about its financing and key players, such as CIRDL, remain shrouded in mystery.

According to the official version, CIRDL will finance 56% of the refinery’s construction, which will occupy 15.4 hectares in Bata, just 10 kilometers from Mbini, the shadowy economic capital of the country. The remaining 44% will be covered by the Equatorial Guinea government through Gepetrol. Shortly after the signing of the agreement, in February 2023, the joint venture Bata Oil Refinery SA was established, registered in Bata with the CIF number 03275B0-22. However, despite Diario Rombe’s efforts to access the registration documents for Bata Oil Refinery SA, this information has not been obtained. In Equatorial Guinea, unlike other CEMAC countries, only shareholders can access company data, leaving citizens in the dark about the distribution of shares in the refinery, information that should be publicly available.

The opacity doesn’t end there. The creation of the official refinery website (bataoilrefinery.com) has only fueled further suspicion. As revealed by Diario Rombe in a post published on January 14, 2023, on its social media platforms, the website is registered in Nigeria, at 46 Supermarket Street, Dadin Kowa Jos, and is controlled by Sandra Mahannan, a Nigerian born on November 5, 1994. This revelation has intensified the suspicion that the project may be designed to benefit external interests, far from the legitimate interests of Equatorial Guinea. Yet, the mystery persists: Who is really behind CIRDL?

CIRDL: The enigmatic financier of the Bata Refinery

In Equatorial Guinea, the regime rolls out the red carpet for any supposed foreign investor, promising to finance large-scale projects. However, this welcome has become a dangerous smokescreen that hides a troubling lack of oversight. There is no serious due diligence process; agreements are signed without thorough analysis or the gathering of crucial data on investment risks and viability. This lack of transparency not only compromises the country but also opens the door to a series of allegedly corrupt practices that directly affect the well-being of its citizens.

Diario Rombe has conducted an in-depth investigation to uncover the true nature of Consolidated International Refinery Development Limited (CIRDL). A common pattern emerges among all companies attracted by Antonio Oburu Ondo in Equatorial Guinea: like CIRDL, these companies present themselves on their websites (such as cirdlhk.com) as leaders in financing engineering, procurement, construction, and consulting projects in the energy and industrial sectors, claiming over 20 years of experience. However, our investigation has shown that these claims are entirely false. What we’ve uncovered about CIRDL is even more alarming and questionable.

The CIRDL website was registered on August 9, 2022, just seven days before the signing of the «Heads of Agreement» with Gepetrol, raising serious doubts about the transparency of the process. Upon investigating its registration in the Hong Kong Companies Registry, we discovered that CIRDL was founded on August 5, 2022—just 11 days before the «Heads of Agreement» was signed in the presence of Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue. This finding highlights a troubling pattern, as this is not the first time the Guinean authorities have awarded multimillion-dollar contracts or signed agreements with newly established companies for specific purposes. A clear example of this is Wayang Teknical Soluções Globais GE SL, which was founded only seven months before the contract was signed.

According to the Hong Kong company registry, the Hong Kong citizen Sze Lai Sha is listed as the director and has no known history in the energy sector. This suggests she may simply be a figurehead—someone placed there to give the appearance of legitimacy without any real involvement in the operation. The registered address of CIRDL, at 402 Jardine House, Central Hong Kong, is a generic address routinely used to register thousands of companies. Additionally, a company acting as the secretary, Zhong Lun Corporate Services Limited, a secretarial firm specializing in company registrations in Hong Kong, is associated with the Zhong Lun Law Firm, which shares the same address.

The most scandalous aspect of all is that Consolidated International Refinery Development Limited (CIRDL) was founded with a share capital of just 1,000 HKD (approximately 128 USD), which is inconceivable for a company tasked with financing a project estimated at 450 million dollars. Since its creation in 2022, CIRDL has shown no significant activity, according to its annual accounts for 2023 and 2024. Given this evidence, the question arises: Who, or what, is truly behind the financing of the Bata Refinery? To answer this question, Diario Rombe traced Michael Orji Ugochukwu, a key figure in this murky puzzle of Antonio Oburu Ondo, hoping to uncover the dark interests behind this controversial project.

Back to the beginning

To understand how Antonio Oburu Ondo, Minister of Hydrocarbons of Equatorial Guinea, and his partner, Michael Orji Ugochukwu, managed to take control of the Bata Refinery project through a complex web of opaque companies, it is necessary to go back to December 2015—just eight months after Antonio Oburu Ondo took over the leadership of Gepetrol. From that moment, Oburu and Orji began to build a network of companies to seize control of the refinery project.

The first step was the creation of Glotech Marine Ltd in the United Kingdom on December 8, 2015. The majority of the company, 80%, was owned by Agherenwi Ngwa Neba, a British citizen of Cameroonian origin. The remaining 20% was split between Junto Ltd and Nrg Futures Ltd, two companies registered in the UK in 2020, controlled by Ugandan accountant Coaston Ahumuza, englishman Robert Peter Cobain, and IT specialist Hanif Mohammed Saddiq, whose nationality remains unknown. These three entrepreneurs played a key role in structuring what would later become the control of the Bata Refinery.

UK business registration documents show that Ahumuza and Cobain served as directors of Glotech Marine Ltd between June 2020 and December 2023. As with other cases, this company presents itself on its website as a firm with over 15 years of experience in maritime services, despite being established in 2015. Five years after the establishment of Glotech Marine Ltd, Oburu, as CEO of Gepetrol, announced the signing of an exclusive agreement with Agherenwi Ngwa Neba to create the joint venture Glotech Marine Equatorial Guinea SA, registered under NIF 01256GM-20 and headquartered in the Gepetrol Tower in Malabo.

This completely opaque agreement was managed without proper transparency, revealing Oburu’s concentration of power over all key details. From that moment, an international network of companies linked to the refinery project began to form, not only including firms in the United Kingdom but also in the United Arab Emirates, Belize, and even Iraq.

GT Energi Ltd: The secret route of the Refinery to Dubai

On October 15, 2020, GT Energi Ltd was registered in the United Kingdom, with the supposed intention of engaging in oil and gas extraction in Equatorial Guinea. The sole shareholder of this company is NRG Futures Ltd. This rapid registration process and the creation of a website for GT Energi Ltd just one month after its establishment suggest that the company is little more than a front to conceal the murky and opaque operations linked to the oil interests of Antonio Oburu Ondo, the Minister of Hydrocarbons and Mining Development.

One year, nine months, and 26 days after the establishment of GT Energi Ltd—on August 10, 2022—a parent company was registered in the United Arab Emirates under the registration number 2220160.01, named GT Energi LLC. Its office was established in Sharjah Media City, a business hub located in Sharjah, UAE, with postal code 515000. According to information obtained by Diario Rombe from the UAE’s business registry, the company’s activities, which are even more concerning, are related to «commission agents and wholesalers operating on behalf of others, as well as the activities of parent companies managing assets.» This strengthens the suspicion that the company was allegedly created to collect commissions from oil operations in Equatorial Guinea.

Surprisingly, GT Energi LLC’s license in the UAE expired on August 9, 2023. However, the UK subsidiary, GT Energi Ltd, was deactivated in November 2024, just after Diario Rombe’s investigations began to uncover the hidden connections between Orji, Oburu, and their associates. Despite the disappearance of the company in the UK and UAE, its website remains active, promoting claims of its alleged «experience» in the oil industry of Equatorial Guinea. 

What is most disturbing is that the directors of GT Energi Ltd are the same actors who control Glotech Marine Ltd. Coaston Ahumuza, Robert Peter Cobain, Nicholas Hofgren, Michael Songer, and Hanif Mohammed Saddiq are repeated as directors, confirming the existence of an interconnected corporate network operating in the shadows to monopolize Equatorial Guinea’s oil resources. Additionally, the inclusion of Juho Partanen as a director further strengthens the suspicion that GT Energi Ltd and its related companies are nothing more than instruments serving this circle of businessmen and politicians who benefit from the exploitation of Guinea’s oil.

One Oilfield Services Limited: The key company

On November 20, 2020, just 36 days after the creation of GT Energi Ltd, Michael Orji Ugochukwu, Antonio Oburu Ondo’s trusted ally, continued to weave his network of opaque companies. On this day, he registered One Oilfield Services Limited (registration number 000029814) in Belize, in what clearly appears to be a calculated maneuver to cover up the diversion of funds linked to Equatorial Guinea’s oil. The company itself does not hide its true nature: its corporate purpose includes integrating oil, gas, and marine services, providing services to the critical industry in Equatorial Guinea and worldwide. In this way, without shame or pretense, it makes it clear: WORLDWIDE.

What is most concerning is the direct connection between One Oilfield Services, GT Energi Ltd, and Glotech Marine Ltd. The use of emails linked to both companies, such as [email protected] and [email protected], confirms what was already suspected: One Oilfield Services is, in fact, an extension of the network of companies operating under the control of Oburu and Orji. This relationship becomes even more evident when it is observed that, until June 2020, One Oilfield Services maintained an official website (www.oosglobal.net), which was quickly taken down after Diario Rombe published an article titled «Michael Orji, the Nigerian Journalist Who Controls Antonio Oburu’s Company in London.»

The cache records of the deactivated website (www.oosglobal.net) reveal that the same individuals listed in Glotech Marine Ltd, such as Coaston Ahumuza and Robert Peter Cobain, also hold key positions in the phantom company One Oilfield Services Ltd. Three new names are added to this list: Cypriot lawyer Nicholas Hofgren, Juho Partanen, and Hanif Mohammed Saddiq. Together, they form a structure that, far from being legitimate, is designed to operate in the shadows, with no scrutiny, and with the sole purpose of monopolizing Equatorial Guinea’s oil resources.

The joint venture behind the Refinery

One Oilfield Services has revealed on its website that it is part of a consortium composed of AmiraUSA LLC, Amira Group Company LLC, and GEPetrol. This consortium, according to information available in the website cache, is leading the construction of a crude oil refinery with a capacity to process 440,000 barrels per day in Equatorial Guinea. However, this information raises more questions than answers, as it not only helps identify the mysterious and questionable actors involved in executing the project but also casts serious doubts on the origin and legality of its financing, particularly beyond the enigmatic Hong Kong-based company.

Delving into AmiraUSA LLC’s involvement in the construction and financing of the Bata refinery, alarming connections with Antonio Oburu Ondo, one of the most powerful and controversial figures in Equatorial Guinea’s regime, emerge. It is important to note that AmiraUSA LLC, led by Mark Asmar, was registered in Virginia on June 30, 2013, with a focus on gasoline supply. This company is part of the Amira Group Company LLC conglomerate, a Virginia-based limited liability company with its main business address at 10527 Providence Way, Fairfax VA 22030.

Public records indicate that Amira uses 4009 N. Richmond St., Arlington, VA 22207 as its business address, which is the same address listed as the residence of Lawrence. According to the business registration, brothers Lawrence and Arman Kayablians jointly own 100% of the defendant company, Amira Group. The executives of AmiraUSA LLC include Nigerians such as Napoleon Emuchay, Sylverter Anyabolu, Joe Light Oyibo, and brothers Mark Asmar and Lawrence Kayablian. According to the information available on their website, AmiraUSA LLC claims to have a presence in three countries in addition to the United States—Nigeria, Iraq, Vietnam, and, surprisingly, Equatorial Guinea—although they do not specify the local address or the company they operate with in Equatorial Guinea.

Access to a confidential document by Diario Rombe, dated September 2, 2020, and signed by Mark Asmar, reveals the existence of an alleged secret agreement with the then-General Director of GEPetrol, Antonio Oburu Ondo, for the financing and construction of the refinery. According to the document, the consortium led by AmiraUSA LLC proposed the construction of a 220,000 bpd refinery, with expansion to 440,000 bpd, and mentions that the formal signing of the agreement with GEPetrol “was scheduled for October 2, 2020, in Malabo, following the finalization of the refinery’s operational agreement with lawyers and design engineers from the Euro 5 refinery.”

The most revealing part of all this is that AmiraUSA claims to have secured “separate financing for this project amounting to more than $6 billion.” However, there is no specification as to where this money actually comes from or who is behind the financing, leaving numerous doubts about the legitimacy of the funds and the potential hidden interests that could be influencing the development of this project.

Westpaq LLC: A key player in the One Oilfield Services consortium with AmiraUSA

According to information reviewed by Diario Rombe, the AmiraUSA LLC consortium, comprising 27 companies, not only maintains an undisclosed joint venture with GEPetrol but also includes the website www.equatorialoil.com in its portfolio. This website, which once served as the official page of the Ministry of Mines, Industry, and Energy of Equatorial Guinea, now claims to be part of their consortium. Furthermore, a deeper analysis of this consortium reveals Westpaq LLC, an apparently low-profile entity registered in Texas in October 2013, yet crucial in the shadowy connections surrounding oil and gas projects in Equatorial Guinea.

But Westpaq’s connection to Antonio Oburu Ondo may be the most alarming aspect. The company operates in Equatorial Guinea from the Alexandra Office K4 building on Airport Road, barrio paraíso, Malabo, Bioko Norte—an office building owned by Antonio Oburu Ondo. This is not a coincidence, but rather a clear indication that Westpaq is part of a close-knit circle within the structure.

The company’s directors include Donna Shepherd Umechuruba, Ikenna Umechuruba, and Ngowari Diminas. Additionally, the company’s registered agent is Nigerian Samuel Biokpo Diminas, whose presence in the company is key for administrative and legal management. In addition to his role at Westpaq LLC, Samuel Biokpo Diminas is also involved in Bay Matrix LLC, a company registered in Texas on April 30, 2019, with operations in Nigeria. Bay Matrix LLC, which operates as a subsidiary of Westpaq LLC, has conducted business under multiple trade names.

While Bay Matrix LLC’s activities in Africa are known, its subsidiary in Equatorial Guinea, Bay Matrix S.L., registered in Malabo under tax identification number 00688BM-19, remains shrouded in mystery regarding its true beneficiaries. The representative of this subsidiary in Equatorial Guinea is Juan Carlos Antai Bokesa, but information about the ultimate owners of Bay Matrix S.L. has been systematically hidden, despite Diario Rombe’s efforts to obtain clarifications from the company.

Legal proceedings in the United Kingdom

The connection between One Oilfield Services Limited, Glotech Marine Ltd, and AmiraUSA LLC in the Equatorial Guinea refinery project has been revealed through several labor lawsuits in the UK that raise more questions than answers. According to documents reviewed by Diario Rombe, the relationship between these companies came to light following a lawsuit filed in the UK in March 2023, in which an English citizen, identified as N Ahitan, sued One Oilfield Services Limited for breaching his employment agreement. This agreement, signed in August 2021, stipulated that the claimant’s employment would begin on August 1, provided that AmiraUSA confirmed the disbursement of funds for the Gulf of Guinea refinery project.

The situation becomes even more complex with the mention of Glotech Marine Guinea Ecuatorial Ltd in a second lawsuit filed by McNeil, who was hired in July 2020 as the Country Manager for the company. McNeil describes how the company was in its startup phase and lacked a solid structure, which highlights the operational deficiencies of the companies involved in the refinery’s construction. This lack of experience and capacity raises serious doubts about the project’s viability, particularly given the profile of the companies involved.

Gunvor SA vs. Arman Kayablian, Lawrence Kayablian, and Amira Group Company LLC

In 2016, Gunvor SA, a prominent Swiss entity, filed a lawsuit in the Eastern District of Virginia against brothers Arman Kayablian and Lawrence Kayablian, as well as Amira Group Company LLC, the parent company of AmiraUSA LLC. The lawsuit centered on questionable business practices related to the trade of Iraqi oil. Court records indicate that the Kayablian brothers had access to Iraqi oil at extremely low prices but lacked the capacity and expertise to sell the oil on the international market, where they could have achieved higher prices.

As a result, they turned to Gunvor SA as a financial partner to provide upfront capital and logistical support for the large-scale purchase of oil and its subsequent resale on the international market. The proposal envisioned both parties profiting from the transactions. According to public court records accessed by Diario Rombe, in the spring of 2016, Gunvor received an email from Jean Jacques Bovay, a lawyer based in Geneva, who indicated that he wanted to introduce Gunvor to the Kayablian brothers, owners of a group of companies called «Amira Industries,» which Bovay claimed had developed several businesses in Iraq.

On March 22, 2016, Gunvor received another email from Thompson, who described himself as “Amira’s [Fuel Oil] trader.” Thompson, who was actually a broker with the firm Hannam & Partners (the same firm advising GT Energi Ltd), proposed organizing a meeting with Gunvor and Hannam & Partners on behalf of the Kayablian brothers. According to court documents, the Kayablians accessed Iraqi oil at exceptionally low prices through Gulf Energy for Petroleum Services, an Iraqi subsidiary of Nemsss Petroleum Ltd, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands. The Incumbency Certificate dated March 17, 2016, lists Nader Eissa A Almously, Arman Mark Kayablian, and Lawrence Khatchi Kayablian as directors of Nemsss.

The agreements between the Kayablians, Amira Group, and Gunvor were structured to resemble a joint venture, though without the formality of a direct agreement, as documented in the court records. The contracts included one for the Iraqi Oil Tankers Corporation to sell the fuel to Gulf Energy for Petroleum Services, a second contract for Gulf Energy for Petroleum Services to sell it to Nemsss Petroleum Ltd, and four additional contracts for Nemsss Petroleum Ltd to resell the fuel to Gunvor, which then sold it to third parties at much higher prices.

Gunvor financed the operation with nearly $125 million but only received about $101 million worth of Iraqi oil. When Gunvor asked the Kayablians and Amira Group Company LLC to justify the missing $24 million, they refused to respond or return the funds. Gunvor alleged that the Kayablians and Amira had committed fraud, using the $24 million prepayment funds and $4 million in logistical funds for purposes unrelated to the oil purchase, then failing to return the money. As a result, Gunvor filed a lawsuit in the federal court of Virginia.

The defendants requested the case be dismissed, arguing that Gunvor had not included Nemsss Petroleum Ltd, an entity owned by them that they considered essential to the lawsuit. The district court agreed, stating that the failure to include Nemsss Petroleum Ltd as a defendant would affect the case’s jurisdiction, and thus dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice. Gunvor appealed this decision, but in 2020, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal, concluding that the absence of Nemsss prevented a fair resolution of the case and that its inclusion was essential to the action.

The government of Equatorial Guinea can no longer ignore these facts. The involvement of the Kayablian brothers’ AmiraUSA LLC in the construction of the Bata refinery requires a thorough and independent investigation.