It looks like Mister Konrad is really Mister Two Per Cent: €6.4m is precisely 2% of the €320m Shanghai Electric Power deal

The Times of Malta reported this morning – based on documents in the Panama Papers – that “Mr Konrad’s” financial advisers told Bentley’s in New Zealand that his “personal businesses” had generated “personal revenue” of GBP5 million, which is €6.4 million. Mister Konrad responded by releasing a statement saying, basically, that the journalists who wrote the story don’t know how to read, and that they are malicious.

Later on in the day, I broke this story about Cheng Chen and another secret company , which makes it more than obvious to my mind that the big source of their illicit funds was the deal with the Chinese government’s power company in March 2014. In that deal, they sold the Delimara power station for €220 million and a 33% stake in Enemalta for €100 million. That’s €320 million.

While staring at that figure, it occurred to me that I should bring out my trusty calculator and work out some percentages. I started cautiously, with 1%. But 1% of €320 million is a figure that means nothing. Two per cent? BINGO. Two per cent of €320 million is EXACTLY €6.4 million.

Mister Konrad’s €6.4 million looking for a secret offshore home is a straight 2% cut on the €320 million Shanghai Electric Power deal he signed on behalf of the Maltese government. Did I hear somebody say ‘used tyres’?