It said it refused to accept a NOK 10m ($1.63m) penalty, plus a claim for NOK 2.5m in saved taxes, levied by Norways’s economic crime agency Okokrim.

“The company disputes Okokrim's findings and finds them unjustified, particularly in relation to the claim that the company has wilfully sought to defraud tax,” it said.

It has refused to pay and Okokrim must now decide whether to take it to court.

The