Did Glencore Engage in Tax Avoidance in Zambian Copper Mines?

On December 9, 2021, Oxfam published a research report investigating potential tax planning strategies by mining giant Glencore in Zambia. The report, titled "Potential Corporate Tax Avoidance in Zambia's Mining Sector? Estimating Tax Revenue Gains from Addressing Profit Shifting or Revising Profit Allocation Rules: A Case Study of Glencore Mopani Copper Mines," breaks new ground not in exposing how Glencore might avoid taxes - a familiar story to our long-time readers - but in using transfer pricing rules to quantify potential tax avoidance. Given the rarity of public transfer pricing reports, Oxfam's findings merit closer examination.