Marchiani confirmed a report in Saturday’s Le Monde newspaper that said he was being probed by a Paris judge who suspects him of having received five million dollars in commission from Elf in connection with a contract in Nigeria.

But Marchiani told AFP: “I confirmed (to the judge) that I did not receive a single cent from Elf or from any of its subsidiaries.”

In November a Paris court handed stiff jail terms to three former top executives at the French oil giant, bringing to a close a trial that exposed unprecedented corruption at the once state-owned firm.

Twenty-seven other defendants in the mammoth corruption case received lesser punishments ranging from three years in prison to suspended sentences, and were ordered to pay fines.

Elf, which was privatized in 1994, is now part of French giant Total – formerly known as TotalFinaElf.

© AFP

                                                              Subject: France news