Company led by PM’s son-in-law sued by unpaid subcontractor

Asianet Hungary Kft. sued Elios Innovatív Zrt (formerly called E-OS Innovatív Zrt.) main contractor of a solar energy plant’s construction at University of Szeged for not paying their work.  CEO of Elios Innovatív Zrt is István Tiborcz, son-in-law of Viktor Orban, and the company is owned by Fidesz-related oligarchs, Lajos Simicska and Zsolt Nyerges.

Elios Innovatív Zrt. – which became favoured company after the 2010 elections – won the public procurement procedure of the construction in a questionable way. The company’s application was the third on the tender; the winner’s offer was much cheaper. Elios turned to the Public Procurement Authority which set aside the decision of the procurer and made announced Elios as winner with its almost half-billion HUF price for the works. The University had no choice than assigning Elios to not lose the EU funds.

The construction had been completed this spring and the solar energy plant is working perfectly. As it turned out in the first-degree hearing at Budapest Tribunal Court, Elios received 482 million HUF from the University, but Asianet didn’t get a single coin after completing their work, which was the 80% of the whole construction. The obligation of Elios to Asianet is 200 million HUF.

According to Hungarian law, main contractors are unable to get their money if they do not announce their sub-contractors to the procurer when their work exceeds the 10% of the assignment and if their bills are not set. To avoid not getting paid from the procurer Elios assigned Asianet for only 8% of the total work as a sub-contractor, the remaining works were done on paper as a supplier.

István Tiborcz, son-in-law of the Prime Minister is summoned for the next Tribunal hearing in the case, which can bankrupt Asianet.

The original article was published on 25/09/2013, in Hungarian