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Nigeria, MultiChoice Settle $4.4 Billion Tax Dispute Out of Court

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Multichoice Nigeria - Investors King

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the MultiChoice Group Ltd. have reached an out-of-court agreement over $4.4 billion tax disputes, the FIRS stated in a statement released on Wednesday in Abuja.

In the agreement reached, Africa’s biggest pay-TV provider will allow FIRS to conduct a forensic audit of MultiChoice’s accounts to determine the organisation’s tax liability while the South African company will withdraw all pending lawsuits, Investors King has learnt.

MultiChoice had approached the Federal High court in 2021 to challenge the penalty imposed by the agency, which claimed the owner of DSTV denied FIRS auditors access to its servers and skipped tax payments.

Tax evasion-related issue is not new between FIRS and foreign companies operating in Nigeria, the agency had dragged MTN Nigeria to court for a similar reason a few years ago.

MTN reportedly paid more than $1 billion in fines and agreed to list its Nigerian business unit on the Nigerian Exchange Limited after it was accused of cancelling subscriptions of people without proper registrations in 2016, though it did not pay fines over tax and the illegal repatriation of the fund.

On Tuesday, Investors King had reported that FIRS gave a one-month window to companies with dollar outstanding tax liabilities to pay in Naira due to forex shortage.

MultiChoice’s shares gained 9.2% since the initial tax claim some eight months ago and on Wednesday extended gains by 2.1% to push its market capitalisation to $3.6 billion.

Is the CEO and Founder of Investors King Limited. He is a seasoned foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and other prominent platforms. With over two decades of experience in global financial markets, Olukoya is well-recognized in the industry.

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Dangote Refinery Sells Petrol At N990 Per Litre to Trucks

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Dangote Refinery

Dangote refinery has finally announced the price of premium motor spirit (PMS), popularly known as Petrol, following months of back and forth.

The company said it sells to domestic marketers at N971 per litre into ships and N990 into trucks, according to a statement signed by Anthony Chiejina, Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer and released on Sunday evening.

“Post deregulation, NNPC set the pace by selling PMS to domestic marketers at N971 per litre for sale into ships and at N990 for sale into trucks. This set the benchmark for our pricing, and we have even gone lower to sell at N960 per litre for sale into ships while maintaining N990 per litre for sale into trucks”, the company said in the statement released on its X page.

On a series of accusations and counter-accusations from IPMAN, PETROAN, and other associations, Dangote refinery said it is impossible to land petrol at a lower price than Dangote refinery’s current price, except they are importing substandard products.

“Both organisations claim that they can import PMS at lower prices than what is being sold by the Dangote Refinery. We benchmark our prices against international prices, and we believe our prices are competitive relative to the price of imports.

“If anyone claims they can land PMS at a price cheaper than what we are selling, then they are importing substandard products and conniving with international traders to dump low quality products into the country, without concern for the health of Nigerians or the longevity of their vehicles. Unfortunately, the regulator (NMDPRA) does not even have laboratory facilities which can be used to detect substandard products when imported into the country.”

The company claimed it started selling at the stated rates without knowing the exchange rate that would be used to pay for the crude purchased.

Meanwhile, the company has said an international trading company rented a depot facility close to its refinery with plans to start blending substandard products and dump them into the Nigerian market to compete with Dangote refinery’s better quality.

“This is detrimental to the growth of domestic refining in Nigeria. We should point out that it is not unusual for countries to protect their domestic industries in order to provide jobs and grow the economy. For example, the US and Europe have had to impose high tariffs on EVs and microchips in order to protect their domestic industries.”

“While we continue with our determination to provide affordable, good quality, domestically refined petroleum product in Nigeria, we call on the public to disregard the deliberate disinformation being circulated by agents of people who prefer for us to continue to export jobs and import poverty.”

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BUA Foods Revenue Surges 104%, Hits N1.07 Trillion Amidst Rising Costs

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BUA Foods Plc, one of the fastest-growing food companies in West Africa, grew revenue by 104% in the period ended September 30, 2024 to N1.070 trillion from N524.48 recorded in the same period in 2023.

The company’s cost of sales also inched higher to N736.975 billion, a 116% from N349.648 billion filed in the corresponding period of 2023 while gross profit rose by 82% to N333.820 billion.

BUA Foods spent 45% more on selling and distribution expenses at N29.319 billion in the period under review from N20.273 billion.

Also, more money was spent on administration as administrative expenses jumped 84% from N7.913 billion to N14.545 billion. During the period, the company spent N43.862 billion on operating expenses, representing a 56% increase from the N28.185 billion spent in 2023.

Still, the 104% increase in revenue bolstered operating profit by 101% to N315.126 billion from N156.883 billion in 2023.

Loss due to foreign exchange fluctuation dragged on the company’s profit before income tax in the first nine months of the year as N87.961 billion was lost due to Naira devaluation to contain profit before tax at N215.657 billion.

Profit after tax increased by 91% from N105.618 billion in 2023 to N201.389 billion.

Commenting on the results, Engr. (Dr.) Ayodele Abioye, the Managing Director, said “We are thrilled to have sustained a remarkable growth trajectory, underscoring the impact of our strategy, innovative product development, and steadfast commitment to quality, even in the face of a challenging business climate.

“Revenue grew by 104% to N1.07 Trillion compared to the same period last year, while our gross profit stands at N333.8 billion, reflecting a growth of 82%. We saw the benefits of our production capacity expansion and product innovation, as we witnessed an 11% growth in aggregate volume which has further strengthened our position within the industry.

“Looking ahead, we will remain steadfast in addressing current food supply challenges by leveraging newly commercialized supply chain assets across our business divisions. We would maintain focus on driving internal efficiencies for business growth towards delivering long-term shareholder value.

“We thank our stakeholders, particularly our customers, and consumers for their love for the brand even as we continue to nourish lives.”

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Dangote Urges NNPC, Marketers to Halt Petrol Imports and Source Locally from Lagos Refinery

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Aliko Dangote - Investors King

The founder and Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) and independent oil marketers in Nigeria to halt petrol imports and source the product from his Lagos refinery.

Dangote made this appeal on Tuesday at the State House, Abuja, while addressing Nigeria’s fuel scarcity issue after a meeting with President Bola Tinubu.

According to the business mogul, the country should not rely on petrol imports when his refinery has over 500 million litres in storage.

Investors King reported that oil dealers in Nigeria resumed importing petrol from abroad, claiming Dangote’s refinery could not meet demand. The marketers said they turned to foreign refiners to avert fuel shortages.

During the press briefing at the State House, however, Dangote emphasized that he should not be blamed for the scarcity or the long queues at petrol stations, as he is only a producer, not a retailer.

Dangote revealed that the NNPC’s reluctance to buy from his refinery costs him money daily.

He explained, “We are producers. I have a refinery. I’m not in the business of retail. If I were, then you could hold me responsible. But what I’m saying is that the retailers should please come forward and pick up the supply. If they don’t, what do you expect me to do? There is nothing I can do.”

“I expect either the NNPC or marketers to stop importing and collect the supply we have here. Keeping millions of litres in storage costs me daily,” Dangote added.

Fuel scarcity has plagued Nigeria since Bola Tinubu announced the end of the fuel subsidy upon assuming office. Despite the establishment of Dangote Refinery in Lagos, Nigerians hoped that petrol scarcity would soon be a thing of the past. While the refinery promised 650,000 barrels per day, the problem persists with no end in sight.

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