“Fabricio Correa has been part of private companies that had been awarded contracts to provide public works services[es]. Even though Fabricio Correa has been emphatic that the contracts were won legally through a competitive bidding process, many do not believe these claims and believe that it has more to do with the fact that his brother is the country’s leader causing the government to look bad in the process.” Read more »
“Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa, who has already changed the Constitution to allow his reelection, is stepping up his attacks on the press after the daily Expreso reported that shell companies owned by his brother Fabricio Correa have won government contracts for up to $80 million over the past two years.” Read more »
“Correa’s threat to the Wall Street Journal is the latest clash the president has had with the media. The government is threatening to close an Ecuadorean television station critical of Correa’s policies, which have boosted government control over key sectors of the economy.” Read more »
“Correa threatened TeleAmazonas, a national broadcaster within Ecuador, with closure for airing Fox’s ‘The Simpsons’ in addition to other violations such as showing graphic images of bullfights and reporting ‘false’ stories.” Read more »
“The campaign against Chevron rests on a foundation of falsehoods, misrepresentation and emotional appeals. But when you have the Ecuadorian government, self-styled documentarians, big-time lobbyists, not to mention Sting’s wife Trudie, all on your side, who needs the facts?” Read more »
“Mr. Correa is anything but respectful of U.S. interests in the region. He’s more like Fidel Castro — albeit with a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Illinois. Under his rule, liberty has been evaporating faster than you can say bolivariano. Now the Reyes letters provide strong evidence that he has been actively supporting the Marxist FARC guerrillas, who see the U.S. as a major enemy.” Read more »
“For starters, Chevron execs can argue that Petroecuador owns the pits and that Ecuador should have cleaned up the mess years ago. And rightly so. They can point to a similar but separate lawsuit against Chevron, which a federal judge in San Francisco dismissed because the attorneys for those Ecuadoran plaintiffs “manufactured” cancer claims. But the main reason Chevron can’t settle is that any deal it makes with the villagers of Lago Agrio could only serve to encourage more lawsuits.” Read more »
FICTION:
“O’Reilly claimed that Texaco made ‘only’ $500 million from its Ecuador operations. However, hard data suggest Texaco had profits upwards of $30 billion, with the lower number the amount booked to the company’s fourth-tier Ecuadorian subsidiary.” - Amazon Defense Coalition Press Release, June 16, 2009
In reality, Texpet (Texaco subsidiary in Ecuador) was a minority partner in a consortium with Petroecuador, the government’s state-run oil company. While approximately $28 billion in revenue was generated by the consortium between 1972 and 1992, more than $25 billion of that went to the Government of Ecuador in the form of royalties, income taxes , direct participation (through Petroecuador) and market subsidies. Texaco received a small fraction of the profits, or $490 million. Ecuador’s Central Bank has validated this.
“Just when I thought things couldn’t get any shadier, I’ve learned that the lobbyist now representing the Amazon Defense Coalition (via Kohn Swift & Graf, P.C.) in its $27 billion lawsuit against San Ramon, Calif.-based Chevron Corporation is the same man who represented Stanford Financial Group and its now-indicted founder R. Allen Stanford between 2002 and 2008.” Read more »
“Last year Correa refused to repay $3.2 billion in global bonds over charges the debt was ‘illegally’ acquired by investors in league with corrupt government officials. His government later bought back most of the debt at very low prices, but analyst say the default will keep the Andean nation out of the debt markets for years.” Read more »
“Chevron accuser paid $200K to Ecuador court’s economist” By Zennie62 – sfgate.com blog “City Brights,” June 17, 2009
“Normally, an expert is called as a witness during a trial and represents one side, either the plaintiff or the defense. In this case, Ecuador had a court-appointed economist who’s by that title is supposed to be non-biased. But the discovery that Cabrera was paid $207,000 – and McCarty has photos of the check to prove it right on his blog – effectively tosses out any claim that Cabrera’s unbiased.” Read more »
“Ecuador offensive fuels press freedom worries”
Reuters, June 16, 2009 “Correa is widely seen as Ecuador’s most powerful leader since its return to democracy in 1979, but the threat to close Teleamazonas could hurt his popularity and reputation abroad.” Read more »
“The Dubious Lawsuit against Chevron in Ecuador – Part 1″
The Oil Drum, June 15, 2009 “It seems to me that the Amazon lawsuit is filled with myths, misunderstandings and out-and-out lies.” Read more »
“Region silent amid attacks on the media” By Andres Oppenheimer – The Miami Herald, June 11, 2009 “What’s most daunting about the latest attacks on the media is not that the narcissist-Leninist presidents of Ecuador and Venezuela are trying to silence independent media – - after all, they need a controlled press to fulfill their goals of becoming presidents for life — but the fact that leading democracies in the region are not sounding the alarm.” Read more »
“What Will Be The Outcome of the Amazon Defense Coalition’s Lawsuit Against Chevron in Ecuador”
Bob McCarty Writes, June 11, 2009 “Recently, I came into possession of copies of six checks totaling more than $206,000 and signed by Luis Yanza, a senior official with ADC (Amazon Defense Coalition)…I am, however, pointing out the undisputed fact that a ‘court-appointed expert’ of questionable qualifications was paid large sums of money by an Ecuadorian company established by the ADC, the financial beneficiary of the lawsuit.” Read more »
FICTION:
“‘Chevron’s mischaracterization of the evidence against it in Ecuador is a clear example of insensitivity to human suffering and a failure to comply with the company’s legal obligations,’ said Pablo Fajardo, the lead lawyer in Ecuador for the Amazon communities.” - Amazon Defense Coalition Press Release: 6/4/09
FACT:
There is no question that the people of the Oriente region face a series of challenges regarding the health in their communities. However, they are being deceived by the trial lawyers and activists who have brought this lawsuit.
The major health concerns in the Oriente region are not the result of oil operations, but are related to a lack of water treatment infrastructure, a lack of sufficient sanitation infrastructure and inadequate access to medical care. The people there, like those in other parts of Ecuador, are suffering from a lack of proper municipal infrastructure for essential services like clean water and sewage treatment.
The truth is that the plaintiffs have not presented any medical evidence to support their accusations regarding health impacts. Moreover, Texaco Petroleum, as designated by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Energy and Mines and overseen by Petroecuador and the government of Ecuador, fully complied with legal obligations by performing remediation activity at 133 of the 321 Consortium well sites (equal to its stake in the consortium with Petroecuador). In fact, the cleanup work was supervised by the government of Ecuador and scientifically verified by two independent laboratories. As a result of the successful remediation, Texaco Petroleum was released of any further liability in Ecuador.
“Emerging-market debt after Ecuador” Reuters, June 8, 2009 “Ecuador is a ‘rogue debtor’ … and its most recent default is pretty much the first time in 30 years that a country has defaulted without at least a ‘colorful claim to distress.’” Read more »
“Ecuador urges crackdown on foreign oil companies” Associated Press, June 8, 2009 “We’re going to radicalize our citizens’ revolution” – Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa Read more »
“President of Ecuador Warns of Legal Sanctions for ‘Each Abuse’ of the Press” Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas – University of Texas at Austin, June 8, 2009 “Rafael Correa has launched new attacks against the media, using a portion of his weekly radio broadcast to challenge what he has described as the ‘mediocre and corrupt press.” Read more »
Reuters – Chevron fights potentially historic damages case
Tuesday, August 24th 2010
Reuters profiles the Chevron Ecuador case:
A run-down court building that also houses the local casino in this Amazon jungle town is the unlikely venue for the largest environmental damages lawsuit ever tried.
Read More »
Reuters – Factbox – Chevron’s $27 bln Ecuador damages case
Tuesday, August 24th 2010
Reuters also features additional details of the Chevron Ecuador lawsuit:
U.S.-based Chevron Corp (CVX.N) faces a $27 billion environmental damages lawsuit in Ecuador, a case that has already dragged on for years and could last many more if it gets bogged down in appeals.
Read More »
The Am Law Litigation Daily – Plaintiffs Counsel Suing Chevron in Ecuador Engaged in Some Crude Lawyering
Friday, August 13th 2010
A new article on the Chevron Ecuador lawsuit:
The story of Chevron in Ecuador already bears a remarkable resemblance to that of Dole in Nicaragua. A U.S. company persuades a U.S. judge to toss out an alien tort claim on forum non conveniens grounds. U.S. plaintiffs lawyers then seek jackpot damages in a Latin American court (while being lionized in a controversial documentary). The corporation discredits the Latin American court by returning to the U.S. courts and alleging fraud.
In Dole's case, a judge in California state court found that some of the plaintiffs lawyers had misled the court. In the Chevron case, it appeared that the actor most clearly discredited was the Ecuadorian judge caught on film discussing damages with an outside party. But last week, as the Litigation Daily previously reported, Chevron's lawyers at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher filed a brief asserting that outtakes from the documentary Crude, turned over by the filmmaker in response to a Second Circuit discovery ruling, suggest that the plaintiffs lawyers themselves choreographed an "independent" expert's report recommending up to $27 billion in damages.
Last year plaintiffs countered coverage of the judicial bias videotapes by attacking the motives and background of the American who secretly filmed the judge. Explaining the newly released footage will be more difficult. Based on what is known so far about the Crude outtakes, outrage seems appropriate. While the footage raises interesting questions of filmmaking ethics, what matters for the litigation is the apparent evidence of collusion between plaintiffs and court-appointed expert Richard Cabrera.
Read More »
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Videos
Caught on Tape: Serious Judicial Misconduct and Political Influence Taint Ecuador Lawsuit
Video Exposes $3 Million Bribe in Ecuador Case. See the Truth.
Cabrera Report Analysis
The court appointed “expert,” Richard Cabrera, has suggested a wholly illegitimate and unsubstantiated damage and penalty recommendation against Chevron.
Behind the Scenes
View detailed interviews with experts on the case. Learn more about why the lawsuit in Ecuador against Chevron and Texaco should be dismissed.
Newsweek – The Read and the Black – Why are Latin American democracies suddenly attacking the free press?
Wednesday, September 1st 2010
Discussion of the restrictions that Ecuador President Rafael Correa is placing on the media:
Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Nicaragua have passed new media laws—all of them aimed at clipping the wings of privately owned news sources—and the call for “social control of media” is viral among lefty groups. (It was unanimously endorsed, for instance, by participants at an August confab in Argentina of regional leftist parties—which now govern 11 Latin American countries—called the São Paulo Forum.) “The threat to freedom is all around,” says Amaury de Souza, a Brazilian political scientist. “And it’s growing.”
Read More »
Eurasia Review – Ecuador Energy Profile: Country Fails To Benefit From High Oil Prices
Wednesday, September 1st 2010
This article discusses Ecuador's oil exports and imports of refined crude:
Ecuador is one of Latin America’s largest oil exporters, with net oil exports estimated at 305,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) in 2009.
Read More »
International Business Times – Ecuador, China sign $1 billion cash-for-crude loan deal
Wednesday, September 1st 2010
Ecuador signs second loan in two months with China:
Ecuador and China signed on Tuesday a $1 billion loan deal as the Asian giant is pushing ahead with the policy of securing energy resources in Latin America and Africa.
The fresh loan deal, which Ecuador's government signed in Beijing with the China Development Bank, comes just two months after Ecuador and the Export-Import Bank of China signed a $1.7 billion deal for financing a huge hydroelectric project in Ecuador.
Read More »
Certain U.S. trial lawyers, political operatives and activists are waging a campaign of misinformation against Chevron. Without evidence, facts or sound science that will stand up to international scrutiny, these trial lawyers and their representatives continue to freely release false and misleading information to defame Chevron in an attempt to force a large financial settlement. Each time the plaintiff’s representatives make a false or misleading statement through the press, the truth will be posted on this blog as part of a running commentary. The false news and misleading information they put out deserves to be corrected-and the public has a right to know the truth. This is Chevron’s blog to set the record straight.
