Tax Ministry: Sibneft owes taxes worth USD 1.5 billion

The tax ministry has increased its claims against Sibneft by another USD 420 million to approximately USD 1.5 billion. 'We received an audit report to the tune of another USD 420 million. The audit was conducted in December 2003.'

The Sibneft press service said it has always followed the letter of the law which can be shown by a number of previous audit reports including one conducted by the Audit Chamber in 2000. Answering a question about whether or not the company would appeal the audit report, the press service said 'we are in the middle of a dialogue with the tax ministry. We can defend our position with reports from previous audits including the audit chamber's report.'