Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
South Africa-listed gold miner Gold Fields on Thursday said it is disputing tax payments demanded by the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) after an audit and is working with the tax authority to resolve the matter.
Gold Fields, which has three gold-mining operations in Ghana, said it could not disclose the size of the back taxes bill but said it is “nowhere close” to the amount Ghana has demanded from mobile operator MTN.
The Ghana tax authority last month slammed mobile operator MTN with a $773 million bill for back taxes after auditing it for the years 2014 to 2018, an assessment MTN is fighting as well.
The GRA audit of Gold Fields covered the period 2018 to 2020, according to a statement from the company. The GRA did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
“Ghana is clearly facing its fiscal and economic challenges at the moment, but we are hopeful that the government will not resort to unreasonable fiscal measures that will further imperil the challenges facing the corporate sector,” Gold Fields spokesman Sven Lunsche said.
One of West Africa’s largest economies, Ghana is facing an economic crisis that saw consumer inflation rise to 54.1% in December and the central bank hike its main interest rate to 28% on Monday.
(By Helen Reid and Cooper Inveen; Editing by Mark Porter)
Comments
BOB HALL
In some managed economies you often get to pay bills with ‘Monopoly Money’. The managers of the economy reach wherever they can for any sort of hard cash. Hopefully they re able to solve their inflation without destroying the economy completely.