Death Behind Closed Doors
A new investigation by EIA exposes devastating truths about oil company Perenco Group’s operations, revealing how cost-cutting and top-down corporate control from its French office contributed to the deadliest offshore accident ever reported in Africa.
In March 2024, six workers lost their lives in an explosion on the Becuna oil platform off the coast of Gabon. As of today, the families of the African victims have not been compensated. This report uncovers disturbing efforts to cover up the tragedy
This isn’t an isolated incident. Perenco’s model of low-cost, high-risk operations has left a trail of environmental and human rights abuses across fourteen countries, from toxic spills in Gabon to opposition against Indigenous land protections in Peru.
EIA’s findings, based on more than four years of conversations with whistleblowers, undercover interviews, and big data analysis, directly contradict Perenco Group’s presentation of their corporate functioning, which has shielded the group from legal consequences for repeated alleged pollution, human rights abuses, and labor violations.
Read the Opportunity to Comment letter we received from the Perenco Group. After the publication of the report, Perenco Group published a response to the report on their website, which you can read here.
This report was originally published on May 21, 2025. The text on pages 3, 16, 21, 24, and 38 was updated and clarified on November 4, 2025 to reflect ongoing investigation by EIA US. That further investigation indicates that most of the families of the victims have been compensated, and the change of workover units did not occasion a change of teams.
