As an emerging petroleum producer, Kenya has the opportunity to use the benefits of its natural resource wealth to further economic and human development. The main factor within the government’s control that will determine the amount of potential government revenue from Kenya’s petroleum wealth is the set of fiscal (tax) terms offered to international oil companies to explore for new sources of oil and natural gas.

There is growing concern among resource-rich developing countries in Africa and beyond that multinational companies are employing aggressive tax avoidance strategies in order to increase their share of divisible revenue. Of the potential mechanisms through which companies seek to minimise their revenue payments to governments, an area of concern is the use of subsidiaries registered in tax havens.

This report reveals the widespread use of tax havens and low tax jurisdictions in the corporate structures of companies holding petroleum rights in Kenya.

Mapping Risks to Future Government Petroleum Revenues in Kenya

This report seeks to provide a framework for assessing the risk of potential revenue loss and for prioritising possible responses

Potential Petroleum Revenues for the Government of Kenya

This research report looks at the current model contract and asks whether recent changes are consistent with best practice and will contribute to improvements in potential government oil revenue. It looks particularly at the shift from a deemed to a paid income tax and argues that this could have a major impact on project economics and potential government revenue.

Reports by Oxfam