The Supreme Court has affirmed an almost one-decade Court of Appeal judgment on $6,927,248 tax debt to Nigeria by an oil service firm, Halliburton West Africa Limited (HWAL).
The $6.9 million is an additional assessment by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) on HWAL’s revenue for 1996, 1997, 1998, and 1999.
However, the firm challenged the sum, arguing that since its Nigerian subsidiary (Halliburton Energy Services Nigeria Limited (HESNL) had been previously assessed, asking it to pay the additional sum amounted to double taxation.
But, a five-member panel of the Supreme Court held on Friday that the appeal filed by HWAL lacked merit.
It consequently threw out the matter and directed the firm to pay the $6.9 million and N2 million as cost to FIRS.
In the lead judgment, Justice Emmanuel Agim found that HWAL failed to prove its claim that its Nigerian subsidiary had previously been assessed.
Justice Agim stated that HWAL and its subsidiary in Nigeria are different taxable entities. He added that there was clear evidence, particularly exhibit F, that Halliburton’s subsidiary was not assessed in the revenue in question.
“On the whole, this appeal fails. It lacks merit. It is accordingly dismissed. The appellant shall pay a cost of N2 million to the respondent,” he said.
The dispute arose when the FIRS, in 2002 made the new assessment of $6,927,248 for the tax years of 1996, 1997, 1998, and 1999. But Halliburton challenged it before the Body of Appeal Commissioners (BAC).
