Ravening FIRS Will Eat Halliburton

American oilfield services firm Halliburton has paid $3.1 million out of taxes to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

The company is expected to pay more ? some additional taxes in excess of $10 million, which includes income tax and value added tax (VAT) that was arrived at after the audit carried out by the tax consultant to the FIRS.

Also, because of the various scandals of its financial dealings in Nigeria, indications are that it may be edged out from the award of contracts for the construction the $1.25 billion train 6 (production line) for the Nigeria LNG plant.

The company voluntarily paid about $3.1 million, but FIRS has assessed additional taxes- income tax, value added tax in excess of $10 million.

Halliburton was last year allegedly involved in a $2.4 million bribery scandal to evade the payment of tax liabilities of $5 million.

In admitting the tax fraud, Halliburton's Corporate Headquarters said its Nigerian subsidiary paid the $2.4 million to some people who had offered to bribe Nigerian tax officials to evade the payment of tax running to $5 million.

Halliburton said the payments "clearly violated" its code of conduct and internal control procedures.

Halliburton's subsidiary, Kellogg Brown & Root, a member of the TSKJ consortium that built the first three-trains for the Nigerian Bonny LNG Plant, has also come under probe over an alleged $180 million kickback to secure the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) $3.8 billion contract.

"The Final Investment Decision for the sixth train will soon be taken after which bids for the project will be considered. Apart from TSKJ, tenders from others are also seriously being considered," said an NLNG source.