Hear the businessman Geir Lolleng about why the tax debt was not paid.

It was after the bankruptcy of Delling Group in 2008 that the Norwegian businessman Geir Lolleng took on large debts.

The then County Administrative Court in Stockholm decided that he was personally liable for repayment of 12.2 million in unpaid taxes and fees to the Swedish state.

But most of that money would never be paid.

Tried to get in touch

The Swedish Enforcement Agency made repeated attempts between 2009 and 2011 to get in touch with him, according to a letter from the Swedish Tax Agency to the Administrative Court in Stockholm.

The task they had to go to was an address in London, but neither at the one nor new addresses that emerged in the UK could the authority get in touch with Lolleng.

In February 2011, the Swedish Enforcement Agency stated that it no longer knew which country Geir Lolleng was in and ended the active search.

The debts are statute-barred

In October 2013, liabilities amounted to just over 10.3 million.

The Swedish Tax Agency then applied to extend the limitation period for the tax debt on the grounds that it had not been able to get in touch with Lolleng to collect the debt.

The Administrative Court decided to agree to this and extended the period to 31 December 2018.

But nothing new emerged during those years and the debt has been statute-barred since 1 January 2019.

Just over a year later, Geir Lolleng is presented as one of three board members for Quality Salmon in Sotenäs, which wants to build Europe's largest land-based salmon farm outside Kungshamn.

Lives in the Philippines

When SVT Nyheter Väst comes in contact with Geir Lolleng, he is in the Philippines where he now lives and works as a business lawyer.

He says that he does not know that the Enforcement Officer searched for him abroad.

Should it be interpreted as you evading Swedish tax?

- No no no.

I met representatives of the Swedish Enforcement Agency many, many times, so I have certainly not done so.

So the Tax Agency is wrong when they write that the Enforcement Officer has not managed to reach you?

- No, I do not deny that it is a tax debt.

But I want to be clear that I have not withheld any tax.

How come you did not pay the tax debt?

- Because I did not have money, I lost everything I owned through bankruptcy.

Leaving the company - after SVT's interview

Less than an hour after the interview ended, Geir Lolleng called his business colleague Roy Høiås and announced that he wanted to resign from his board position in Quality Salmon Sotenäs.

- The reason why he leaves the board is that there has been a lot of focus on his history from 2009 which he believes is not beneficial for Quality Salmon and has nothing to do with the company.

The establishment of Quality Salmon does not benefit from having this negative publicity, says Roy Høiås to SVT Nyheter Väst.

Did you know that the Swedish Enforcement Agency has been trying to reach him for several years for an unpaid tax debt?

- We knew the story, but did not think it would have any significance for his role as a board member.

According to Roy Høiås, the salmon project will not be affected by Geir Lolleng's departure.