Following a fresh claim by PriceWaterhouse Coopers (PwC) that the electricity distribution companies (DisCos) have not paid tax to the Federal Government(FG) since privatization of the power sector in 2013, the 10 DisCos have faulted the claim.
The Chief Economist of PwC Dr Andrew Nevin had made the comment at a power sector roundtable organised by Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited on Wednesday.
He said the Discos have been unable to pay tax to the government from their operations because they have been on loss-making tracks, since 2013, when they bought the assets from the government.
In reaction to the claim, the umbrella body of the 10 DisCos, Association of Electricity Distributors(ANED) described this as “misleading”.
While acknowledging Dr. Nevin’s effort to highlight the challenges of the sector in his presentation, thus, fostering dialogue that is critical for the resolution of same, Executive Director, Research and Advocacy, Mr. Sunday Oduntan in a statement on Thursday, maintained that its members have always taken their tax obligations to the federal and state governments serious.
These taxes include the minimum Company Income Tax (CIT), Withholding Tax (WHT) and Value Added Tax (VAT).
To this end, it urged stakeholders in the sector to always verify information divulged to the public to avoid adding to the sector challenges.
“We would like to encourage all parties interested in the growth and success of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry to constantly diligently verify their information, to avoid creating more challenges than that which already exists in the sector, “he said.
