By LYDIA NATHAN

Ncell Pte Ltd, a subsidiary of Axiata Group Bhd, has settled all its tax matters with the Large Taxpayer Office (LTPO) of Nepal, with a further advance deposit of approximately Nepalese rupee (NPR) 13.6 billion (RM563.15 million).

Ncell said in a statement that the tax settlement was made according to the requirement of the tax agency as part of the indirect sale by its previous owner, TeliaSonera Norway Nepal Holdings AS.

As such, LTPO also certified in an official note that Ncell had fully complied with the direction of depositing advance tax pursuant to Section 95A of the Income Tax Act, 2058 (2002).

Ncell MD Simon Perkins said in a statement that the company has consistently complied with the laws of the country, and have on all occasions exercised the highest standards of governance and compliance pertaining to the fulfilment of its tax obligations.

“We thank the government of Nepal and the LTPO for their support in coming up with a resolution and concluding this matter with Ncell.

“With this conclusion, Ncell can now focus on proceeding with our investment and service expansion plans, in particular, with regards to 4G (fourth-generation) roll-out which will leapfrog Nepal’s digital economy, without any further obstacles,” he said.

Moving forward, the company is expected to continue to invest aggressively in Nepal’s telecommunications infrastructure and ensure the delivery of high quality services to the people of the country.

To date, Ncell remains one of the largest taxpayers in Nepal with over NPR160 billion paid over the last 13 years.

Ncell contributes 3.2% to the gross domestic product (GDP) of Nepal, its capital and operational investment in 2016 alone amounts to US$258 million (RM1.11 billion).

Through its operations — directly and indirectly — Ncell supports close to 110,000 jobs in Nepal.