Companies roundup: Tullow Oil and UK retail

Tullow wins round one of Ghana tax dispute Tullow Oil (TLW) has won the first of three legal disputes with the Ghanaian government over claims that it owes more tax.

The company, which operates oil and gas sites in Gabon, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, said a tribunal at the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has ruled that it does not owe £320mn in Branch Profit Remittance Tax that was being claimed from it by the Ghana Revenue Authority.

Tullow “continues to engage” with the Ghanaian government over two other claims totalling $387mn, which were referred to the ICC in February 2023. Tullow’s shares jumped by 11 per cent. MF

Retailers suffer ‘drab’ December

A ‘drab’ December meant a quieter Christmas for retailers last year than in 2023.

Footfall fell by 2.2 per cent in the final month of the year, despite the later timing of the Black Friday period, according to figures from the British Retail Consortium and Sensormatic.

This meant visits to stores dropped by 2.5 per cent in the final three months of the year, typically considered the sector’s ‘golden quarter’. Although visits to retail parks held up, footfall fell on high streets by 2.7 per cent and in shopping centres by 3.3 per cent.

BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said this was the second year in a row that footfall had declined and called for changes to the business rates system to encourage investment in high streets. MF

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