(MENAFN) Ukraine announced on Monday that its anti-corruption bodies had initiated a "large-scale operation" within the nation’s energy industry to expose corruption tied to a "high-level criminal organization."

According to a statement by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), the operation was carried out in cooperation with the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO).

The agency reported that the extensive probe required 15 months of investigative work and included 1,000 hours of recorded audio evidence.

“The activities of a high-level criminal organization have been documented,” the statement declared, explaining that the network aimed to manipulate “strategic state-sector enterprises,” notably the state nuclear power provider, Energoatom.

In a follow-up report, NABU disclosed that participants in the illicit operation attempted to secure unlawful profits amounting to between 10% and 15% of government contract values.

“In particular, Energoatom's counterparties were imposed conditions for paying kickbacks for avoiding blocking payments for services provided/products delivered or deprivation of supplier status,” the agency stated.

The bureau alleged that the leader of the “criminal organization” included an adviser from the Ministry of Energy and a former law enforcement official who once headed Energoatom’s security division. However, no specific identities were made public.

“Using official connections in the (energy) ministry and the state-owned company, they ensured control over personnel decisions, procurement processes and the movement of financial flows,” NABU added, estimating that roughly $100 million circulated through the corrupt network.

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