The Federal Government received a total of $3,243, 223,518 as payment from Shell Petroleum Development Company in the fiscal year 2020.
The payment covers a series of business transactions the company conducted in the year under review which range from production entitlement, taxes, royalties and fees.
This was contained in the company’s reports on Sustainability, Industry Associations and Payments to Governments.
A breakdown of the indicates that $2,277,898,173 was paid to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), now Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, as production entitlement. Another $446,926,575 was paid to the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR)as royalties. The Federal Inland Revenue Service got $440,398,424 as tax and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was paid $73,419,624.
Recently, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) named Shell as a “leading tax compliant organisation in Nigeria for 2021” at an award ceremony in Abuja last week as part of the second annual National Tax Dialogue, Shell companies in Nigeria also won the award for ‘remarkable performance in the remittance of various taxes’ in the same year.
The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC), Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo) and Shell Nigeria Gas paid a combined $6 billion in direct taxes between 2015 and 2020 to the government. At an award ceremony in Abuja last week as part of the second annual National Tax Dialogue, Shell companies in Nigeria also won the award for ‘remarkable performance in the remittance of various taxes’ in the same year.
Muhammad Mamman Nami, executive chairman of the FIRS, Mr. Muhammad Mamman Nami, noted that Shell companies demonstrated commitment to paying all government taxes hence the two awards.
Reacting to this development, Osagie Okunbor, Managing Director, SPDC and Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria, said he was happy that government partners and stakeholders recognised Shell’s significant contributions to the revenue of Nigeria by which the government is able to grow the economy and bring about developments to every part of the country.
Okunbor said, “Nigeria is an important heartland for Shell, and will remain so. We will continue to invest in the country to help meet its energy needs, with a focus on growing our deep-water and gas positions.”
Okunbor, who was represented at the event by a director of the SPDC and General Manager Business Government Relationship, Bashir Bello, said Shell companies would remain committed to expanding their gas portfolio for domestic and export markets while also increasing access to energy for Nigerians.”
In 2021, the company spent 84.8% of the $37.5 billion to encourage local content, this amount was spent on goods and services purchased from suppliers based in the same country of operation, also called local procurement.
“ About 63% of our procurement was in Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, the UK and the USA, of which 83.5% was spent with local suppliers.”
“We estimate that around $4.2 billion was spent in countries that, according to the UN Development Programme’s Human Development Index 2019, have a gross domestic product of less than $15,000 a year per person. In these countries, Shell companies spent around 88.1%, or around $3.7 billion, with local suppliers.”
“Our community skills and entrepreneurship programmes benefit local communities where we operate by creating employment opportunities and contributing to economic development, while adding value to our supply chain. In 2021, around 26,700 people participated in and more than 700 businesses were supported by our skills development and entrepreneurship programmes. In 2021, our community skills programmes helped more than 1,300 people to gain employment immediately following the training.”
Shell has two global entrepreneurship programmes – Shell LiveWIRE and Shell StartUp Engine.
Shell’s LiveWIRE helps entrepreneurs turn their ideas into reality and operates in 18 countries. In 2021, Shell LiveWIRE trained more than 3,600 people around the world and helped to create more than 2,270 jobs. The programme supported around 670 existing businesses and helped create around 125 new businesses, with 19 Shell LiveWIRE-supported businesses entering our supply chain in 2021.
Shell StartUp Engine is a global innovation programme for entrepreneurs in the energy industry and supports early-stage start-ups in areas such as renewables, energy storage, smart grids and electric mobility. In 2021, the programme was delivered in the UK, France, Singapore, Brazil and the Netherlands (New Energy Challenge), with 40 start-ups receiving support.
Olusola Bello
