'Zambia tackles 'deliberate' undervaluation of mineral exports’ 10 June 2020

Zambia on Wednesday said mines ministry officials will, starting next month, personally collect samples from mine sites around the country to prevent mining companies seeking to undervalue their production to pay less taxes. The ministry said some mineral exporters deliberately submit low-grade samples to the state laboratory, causing an undervaluation of mineral exports and depriving the government of mineral royalty tax revenue.

"The loss of revenue could amount to hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dollars per export, depending on the discrepancy in mineral grade between the sample and the consignment being exported," Barnaby Mulenga, permanent secretary at the ministry of mines, said in a statement…Africa's second-largest copper producer, Zambia is also trying to diversify its revenue base by boosting its gold production, and making copper mining companies account for the gold they produce as a by-product. Companies operating in Zambia include First Quantum Minerals, Glencore, Barrick Gold and Vedanta Resources.