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This article computes the effective average tax rate for companies in the Belgian energy sector and compares it with the equivalent tax rate for other European countries. The article uses a sample of accounting data for the year 2010 for 531 firms operating in Belgium. The results demonstrate the importance of fiscal activism, as the effective tax rate is among the lowest while the statutory tax rate is one of the highest. This has a positive impact in terms of incentives to invest, but also a cost in terms of fiscal revenue. Moreover, fiscal activism can easily be reversed, as the changes adopted in 2013 illustrate.