Chevron employees sentenced in Indonesia corruption case Two environmental managers at Chevron, the US oil and gas group, have been jailed for two years on corruption charges in Indonesia in a hotly-contested case that has compounded investor concerns about legal uncertainty in the vital energy sector. Jakarta's corruption court found Endah Rumbiyanti and Kukuh Kertasafari guilty of corruption in separate verdicts handed down on Wednesday and Thursday, part of a complex, ongoing series of trials related to an environmental clean-up project. The ramifications stretch beyond the courtroom to the heart of Indonesia's relationship with foreign investors as the nation's recent track record of economic growth starts to cool. The attorney-general's office alleged that Ms Rumbiyanti, Mr Kertasafari and three colleagues failed to obtain the proper permits for a project to remove toxic substances from the soil after drilling by Chevron in Sumatra. Prosecutors alleged the Chevron employees thereby breached Indonesia's tough anti-corruption law, because some of the expenses of the clean-up programme would eventually have been eligible for reimbursement by the government as part of its "cost recovery" scheme to promote new oil exploration, causing losses to the state. The company said that it was "shocked" by the verdicts, claiming that "no actual evidence of any state loss or any illegal activity" by its employees has been presented in court since the trials began in December. Lawyers for both employees said they would appeal against the verdicts. "I am really disappointed with the verdict today, because according to the facts and evidence presented during the trial, I'm not guilty," said Ms Rumbiyanti, a 37-year-old mother of five. I was in the US almost the whole time the project was ongoing. Senior officials at Indonesia's energy ministry, oil and gas regulator and the national human rights commission have supported Chevron's position, arguing that no laws have been broken. Energy ministry officials and oil industry executives have argued that the case will damage Indonesia's attractiveness to investors at a time when its oil production is dwindling, its energy needs are growing rapidly and its bill for fuel subsidies is ballooning. Two Chevron contractors were jailed in May for five and six years, respectively, for their roles in the case. The corruption court, which is trying each individual separately, is scheduled to issue the verdict for another Chevron manager on Friday, while a fourth Chevron employee is in custody while his trial is ongoing. The fifth Chevron employee who has been named as a suspect is out of the country. The attorney-general's office has rejected criticism of the way it has pursued the case, saying that "the prosecutor is just doing its job in line with the law. Chevron, the country's biggest crude oil producer, is not the only investor affected by the increasing unpredictability of doing business in Indonesia. Because of the uncertainty investment in oil exploration has been stifled. Indonesia is the world's 20th biggest oil producer but became a net importer in 2004 as demand for fuel grew faster than investment in exploration.