NOC says Audit Bureau is responsible for hindering registration of its contracts

The National Oil Corporation (NOC) held the Audit Bureau responsible for not registering contracts concluded by companies operating in the oil sector with the Tax Authority, due to the Bureau’s instructions, despite the Law Department’s assertion that the contracts signed by these companies did not include the previous oversight of the Audit Bureau.

In a letter addressed to the Audit Bureau, the NOC warned of the consequences of not registering these contracts with the tax authority; as this represents a breach of the contractual obligations of these companies, which may open the door for compensation as a result of the termination of these contracts or the change in contractual prices, as a result of the delay in their implementation.

The operating companies affiliated with the NOC had signed contracts related to the maintenance and development of surface equipment; for the purpose of increasing production, with local and international contractors, before the Tax Authority refused to register them in implementation of instructions issued by the Audit Bureau, which stipulated approval before registration.