Court holds hearing for claim against SARCO after ASCO fire

A Saudi court held an urgent hearing on Tuesday to consider the lawsuit filed by Mohammed Qusai Asaad, a shareholder at Arabian Sulfonates Co. (ASCO) against Saudi Arabia Refineries Co. (SARCO) after a fire had erupted at ASCO plant.

During the hearing, ASCO’s chartered accountant said that all financial records related to the period from 2014-2016 were damaged during the fire, and no report has been yet issued by the civil defense to explain the fire reasons, SARCO said in a bourse statement Tuesday.

The accountant had earlier provided the external auditor with copies of financial records for 2014 and 2015, but failed to submit any documents for 2016 – when the company incurred major losses – citing a fire.

Qusai’s lawyer said he had no details about ASCO’s fire, moving the court to have more time to provide details about the company’s losses with supporting documentations.

Accordingly, the upcoming hearing for SARCO’s claim against ASCO and Mohammed Qusai’s lawsuit against SARCO was also advanced to October 4, 2017 from October 11, 2017.

SARCO currently owns 34 percent of ASCO. Last November, SARCO filed a lawsuit against ASCO’s management team over major financial losses.

In December 2016, ASCO’s shareholder Mohammed Qusai Asaad had filed a claim against SARCO, requesting the liquidation of the financially troubled sulfonates unit.