A final verdict will be released on 28 October 2014 against the tycoon Nassef Sawiris to end the two-year tax dispute, according to a statement released by Orascom Construction Industries (OCI NV). The statement read that OCI submitted all the necessary documents to the appeal committee of the Egyptian Tax Authority (ETA) on 16 September following a court ruling to uphold a three-year jail sentence and a EGP 50m fine against Sawiris for failing to pay the cheques to the ETA. OCI confirmed the company has appealed against all the verdicts. According to Naeem Holding Company for Financial Investments, Sawiris condemned the rule, stating that the main dispute revolves around whether OCI is a tax evader and this will be cleared up after the appeal. The government of former president Mohamed Morsi claimed that Sawiris had sold the cement portfolio of OCI to global cement company Lafarge in order to benefit from a tax exemption under the capital market law, but the ETA reached an agreement and annulled this exemption demanding Sawiris to pay the taxes in a retroactive application of the law. Sawiris paid roughly $2.5bn in order to solve the dispute under former prime minister Hesham Qandil's government, but Sawiris ceased payment after Morsi's ouster. In July 2014 Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb met with Sawiris and the ministers of the cabinet's economic group in order to seek a settlement to the tax dispute. Al-Borsa has learned from cabinet sources that the government will not exempt Sawiris completely from paying the taxes owed in accordance with an agreement with Hesham Qandil's government, but will negotiate the method for paying the taxes.
