SABMiller Faces Grilling Over African Taxes

Brewer will be questioned over report alleging tax avoidance strategies.

SABMiller, the world’s second-biggest brewer by volume, has denied allegations that it dodged taxes in some African countries and is prepared to discuss the matter further at a meeting later this month.

Officials from South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania, Ghana and Mauritius will meet later this month to discuss tax payments made by the London-based SABMiller.

The brewer of brands such as Castle Lager, Grolsch and Peroni will face a grilling on June 28 in Cape Town after a report by ActionAid, a UK non-profit group, challenged the way the brewer paid taxes in those countries.

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SABMiller has said it “strongly refutes” the allegations made in the report, stating “We do not engage in aggressive tax planning in any part of our operations, and the report includes a number of flawed and inaccurate assumptions”.

In November, ActionAid said that the company avoided paying US$31 million in taxes in Africa and India through legal tax-avoidance strategies.

The firm, which has stock exchange listings in London and Johannesburg, said it paid $2.1 billion in taxes to African countries in the past financial year.