A shock report published on May 21, 2025 by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA US), entitled “Death behind closed doors”, sheds light on the dramatic circumstances of an oil accident that occurred in March 2024 off the coast of Gabon. The explosion on the Becuna platform, operated by the Franco-British group Perenco, caused the death of six workers, making it the deadliest offshore accident ever reported on the African continent.
The EIA’s revelations are based on four years of investigation, combining interviews with whistle-blowers, undercover work and technical analysis.
The report denounces a high-risk corporate culture, dictated by the unbridled pursuit of profit, often to the detriment of safety standards, the environment and human rights.
According to the investigation, the six victims – all employees of the platform – were forced to continue maintenance operations despite multiple oil spills warning of structural instability.
These warnings were not mentioned in the technical reports, on the instructions of management in Paris, in order to avoid interrupting operations and incurring financial losses.
Worse still, the EIA accuses Perenco of disposing of evidence after the disaster, in violation of international standards. Human remains were allegedly handled and disposed of without due process, while pressure was put on a key witness to the accident. An alleged bribe of $65,000 was paid to a Gabonese prosecutor to bury the case. At the same time, the family of the sole French victim, who was responsible for the operation, is said to have received nearly 10 million US dollars in exchange for signing a confidentiality agreement. The families of the African victims, meanwhile, have received no compensation to date.
Centralized governance despite talk of decentralization
Perenco has always maintained that its numerous subsidiaries are autonomous, thus escaping the direct responsibility of the parent company. An argument dismissed by the experts quoted by EIA. “As far as I know, certain essential aspects such as financing or strategic investments cannot be handled locally,” asserts David Collis, professor at Harvard Business School. In reality, all key decisions are taken in Paris and London, as confirmed by a former Perenco country manager.
This is not the first time Perenco has been the target of such accusations in Gabon. In 2020, in the commune of Etimboué, several NGOs and local residents denounced chronic water and soil pollution, causing respiratory and dermatological illnesses. The case, reported by international media, was hushed up after a brief administrative investigation, without any sanctions or compensation for the local population.
Mixed reactions from the Gabonese authorities
The EIA report calls for strong action by the Gabonese government, in particular the Presidency of the Republic, the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Labor, to shed full light on responsibilities. In May 2024, the President of the Transition, Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, discreetly visited the scene of the tragedy. But according to EIA, the findings of a state-commissioned internal audit were never passed on to the president or his close associates, casting doubt on a high-level cover-up.
More than a year after the tragedy, no independent commission has yet been formally set up, despite repeated calls from international NGOs and the families of the victims. However, an environmental monitoring unit was recently announced within the Ministry of the Environment, a sign that international pressure is beginning to take effect.
Perenco’s strategic silence and legal defense
Asked by the EIA to answer 35 specific questions, Perenco preferred to hide behind a letter signed by its lawyer Clément Dupoirier, a member of the Paris Bar. In his reply, the lawyer denounces a “biased, prejudicial questionnaire riddled with implicit and explicit assumptions”, and asserts that his client will make no comment. He nevertheless asks that the contents of his letter be included in any public publication.
“My client asks that you mention the contents of this letter, should you decide to make any form of report public […] My client reserves all his rights in this matter.”
The Perenco case is becoming emblematic of the shadowy areas of oil exploitation in Africa, where powerful multinationals, aging infrastructures and lax regulations combine to the detriment of workers, local residents and ecosystems. The EIA urges France and the UK, where the group’s headquarters are located, to open a judicial inquiry into Perenco’s practices.
Until independent control mechanisms are put in place and justice is done fairly – whether for African or European victims – the spectre of a new Becuna looms dangerously over Africa’s coasts.
Boris Ngounou
