Newmont Ghana Gold Limited has paid more than $47 million (GH¢71.44 million), representing taxes, royalties and levies for the third quarter of this year, to government. The amount is made up of $39 million in corporate taxes, $6 million with respect to the National Fiscal Stabilisation Levy and $2 million as mineral royalties for the month of September (royalties are paid monthly). The corporate tax paid represented an increase of 30 per cent over what the company paid for the previous quarter. Newmont is also the only miner which has complied with the request to pay taxes in foreign currency. These came to light when the mining company presented a cheque covering the total amount to the Large Taxpayer Office (LTO) in Accra, making it the company's single largest corporate income tax payment. Speaking at the presentation, the Deputy Commissioner in charge of LTO, Mr Kwame Ofosuhene Apenteng, was happy with the contribution of Newmont to the local economy. He said the tax collected from Newmont in the previous quarter represented over 25 per cent of total collections in that quarter, adding that the miner was an important customer to the LTO. Mr Apenteng was also pleased that Newmont had been proactive in paying its taxes in foreign currency and had also volunteered to pay mineral royalties monthly although a law to enforce that policy had not yet been passed. He described the contribution of Newmont and the mining sector in general to the national kitty as very significant, and expressed the hope that Newmont would continue to live up to its responsibility and pay more to the state in subsequent quarters. The Director of Tax at Newmont Ghana Gold, Mr Edwin Allotey Acquaye, who led the delegation from the mining company, explained that the tax paid was significantly higher than that of the previous quarter because of the surge in the price of gold. He added that as a result of the high gold prices, the company revised its profit forecast and, therefore, forecasted higher taxes for 2011. However, he pointed out that the surge in gold price had also led to an increase in prices of the inputs for gold production. The tax director said Newmont was a responsible corporate citizen hence its decision to grant its request to pay its taxes in foreign currency and also volunteered to adopt the proposed changes in the new mineral royalty payment schedule. Mr Allotey Acquaye noted that Newmont Ghana's payment of its taxes in foreign currency was a clear testimony of the company's commitment to the development of the Ghanaian economy. He also spoke about the enormous contribution of mining to Ghana and urged the LTO to constantly update the record of the funds mobilised from large taxpayers with a breakdown according to sectors to enable the public have a clear idea of the contribution of mining to the economy.