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Abu Dhabi's Taqa Sued in U.S. Court by Ex-CEO Claiming He Was Forced Out
Ex-Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. Chief Executive Officer Peter Barker-Homek sued the state-owned energy firm known as Taqa in a U.S. court, claiming he was forced out last year after he “tried to put a stop to the kickbacks, bribery, accounting fraud and corruption.”
Barker-Homek, recruited to Taqa after working at energy companies including BP Plc, was allegedly forced by General Manager Carl Sheldon to sign a severance agreement, according to the breach-of-contract lawsuit filed Aug. 27 in Detroit federal court. Barker-Homek’s departure in October came after the company made about a dozen acquisitions in three years.
Sheldon, also named as a defendant, took over for Barker- Homek, who was paid an $800,000 base salary with a bonus of $2.4 million, according to the suit. Barker-Homek seeks at least $460 million in compensatory and exemplary damages.
Taqa, about three-fourths owned by the Abu Dhabi government, owns assets in oil and gas production and power generation in the Middle East, North America, the North Sea and India. The company said in an e-mailed statement that it will fight Barker-Homek’s suit and what it called its “spurious allegations.” Taqa unit Taqa New World Inc. is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, according to the complaint.
In addition to his contract claim, Barker-Homek alleged retaliatory discharge, assault and intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress. Barker-Homek, a resident of California according to the complaint, didn’t immediately return calls seeking comment.
Contract Breach
He claimed Taqa breached their contract by forcing his termination when he tried to raise awareness of illegal activity. The firing violated Michigan law against dismissing employees who highlight alleged wrongdoing within a company, according to the lawsuit.
Barker-Homek “declined to enter into a deal with an Indian computer company that would give kickbacks to Taqa executives,” he said in his complaint. The Indian company “later admitted to a massive fraud scheme,” he said in the suit.
Barker-Homek “refused to bribe officials in Morocco in order to obtain the rights to build a power plant there,” and “hired, and then refused to fire, Jewish-American interns,” according to the complaint.
Barker-Homek said he was fired after protesting an “Enron- like accounting scheme” to hide on Taqa’s books “substantial liabilities, consisting of billions in debt” for the Abu Dhabi Water & Electric Authority.
Assault Claim
Barker-Homek’s claim of assault relates to allegations in the complaint that Sheldon and other Taqa employees threatened him with arrest. The ex-CEO said Sheldon and the company were negligent for not preventing the threats, according to the suit.
Barker-Homek also alleges that “Taqa’s executives launched a smear campaign” to discredit him and destroy his reputation. “They bad-mouthed Barker to recruiters. They even went so far as to spread rumors that Barker was dying of cancer,” he said in the lawsuit.
The case is Barker-Homek v. Abu Dhabi National Energy Company PJSC, 2:10-cv-13448, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan (Detroit).
To contact the reporters on this story: Anthony DiPaola in Dubai at adipaola@bloomberg.net; Margaret Cronin Fisk in Southfield, Michigan, at mcfisk@bloomberg.net.
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