Reykjavík Grapevine - 16.07.2018, Blaðsíða 12

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Wildlife Photo Exhibition at the
Whale Safari ticket office
Tourism is not the only troubled indus-
try In Iceland. The sharp increase in
demand for solar panels has neces-
sitated growth in silicon production.
The country’s abundant, cheap and
sustainable energy has made Iceland
an attractive base. United Silicon
was the first manufacturer to go into
production and has been the source of
a constant stream of bad news from
the start. The latest scandal involves
the company’s founder and former
CEO Magnús Ólafur Garðsson’s second
fraud case. United Silicon is suing him
in Reykjanes District Court seeking
reimbursement for 71 million Icelan-
dic Króna (ISK).
They claim Magnús deposited this
sum in a Danish bank account and
then used it for his personal benefit.
At the beginning of the year, Magnús
was convicted for issuing around half
a billion ISK in fraudulent bills to an
Italian company. The giant consult-
ing firm KPMG discovered the fraud
as part of bankruptcy procedures. The
latest fraud case was uncovered after
the first trial concluded. Everyone else
in the company claims to know nothing
about the crimes.
Insurance not reassuring
United Silicon made an insurance
claim for faulty equipment in 2017.
The insurer said it was a valid claim
but could not pay it because the policy
had been issued to a holding company.
Magnús was therefore the only person
who could make the claim. United Sili-
con threatened to sue Magnús if he
did not file the claim. He agreed to do
so in court. However, the company is
still considering legal action against
him. The insurance payment was 112
million ISK.
The company filed for bankruptcy,
around the same time they filed charges
against Magnús. Investors and lend-
ers had until the spring to file claims
against the company. Claims totalling
23 billion ISK were made. Arion Banki,
the only large private commercial
bank in Iceland, was a major investor
in the company. The bank also loaned
United Silicon considerable amounts
of money while it was operating, and
made the largest claim at 9.5 billion
ISK against the company, of which 9
billion was given priority status. Arion
Banki was the only large claimant to be
given priority and others are suing for
damages as well. The bank has admit-
ted it was wrong to lend the company
so much while its problems were so
large and frequent.
Troubled from the Start
It was a long, dirty road to bankruptcy
for United Silicon. The plant was
approved with the support of many
political, business and labour lead-
ers in the community. Reykjanesbær
Words:
Colin Arnold
Dalrymple
Photo:
Art Bicknick
and Facebook
Silicon Folly: The Failure of
the Latest Industrial Trend
Mismanagement takes the situation from bad to worse
Helter skelter in Helguvík
12 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 16— 2018