RECPDCL Invites Bids for 223 MW ISTS-Connected Solar Projects

Clean Energy Tech Firm Ecozen Raises $30 Million for Global Expansion

SJVN Green Energy Invites Bids to Source Land for 200 MW Solar Projects in Assam

Avaada Inks ₹45 Billion Refinancing Deal for Four Solar Projects in Rajasthan

Daily News Wrap-Up: Application Process for ALMM Inclusion and Renewal

Australia Adds 5.9 GW of Renewable Capacity to the Grid in 2023

POWERGRID Wins Contracts to Evacuate 18 GW of Renewable Energy

MNRE Seeks Feedback on Guidelines for PM-Surya Ghar Rooftop Solar Program

Apple Partners with CleanMax to Power India Operations with Renewable Energy

Explainer: Application Process for ALMM Inclusion and Renewal


					<table id="amazon-polly-audio-table">
						<tr>
						<td id="amazon-polly-audio-tab">
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-label">Listen to this article</div>
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-container">
			<audio class="amazon-ai-player" id="amazon-ai-player" preload="none" controls   controlsList="nodownload" >
				<source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/amazon_polly_46648.mp3?version=1671791891">
			</audio>
		</div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-subscribe-tab"></div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-by-tab"></div>
						</td>
						</tr>
					</table><p>The <a href="https://delhihighcourt.nic.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Delhi High Court</a> has granted a solar developer interim protection against the retrospective denial of a concessional rate of duty on imports for a 600 MW solar power project.</p>
<p>The Court directed the Customs Board, which is part of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (<a href="https://www.cbic.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CBIC</a>), not to take any action regarding the import of goods as the products had been registered under the Project Import Regulations Act, 1986.</p>
<p>After the government raised basic customs duty on imported solar modules by 40% earlier this year, a slew of companies had requested the Customs department to allow imports under the Act, which provided for a single and concessional rate customs duty rate for most of the equipment needed to set up a power project.</p>
<p>However, the Act does not specify that solar projects are also allowed under the provisions. The government in October <a href="https://mercomindia.com/government-shuts-door-solar-hoping-concessional-import-duty/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">amended</a> the Act explicitly disallowing the provisions to be used for solar projects even though it was not clear whether the change would be applied prospectively or retrospectively.</p>
<p><strong>Background</strong></p>
<p>ReNew Hans Urja is developing a 600 MW solar power project in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer district. It submitted before the Commission that it was within its rights to import items needed for the project at a concessional rate of duty which, according to the Customs Board, stood withdrawn as per the notification dated October 19, 2022.</p>
<p>The solar developer noted that even if the notification was taken at face value, it was designed to come into force on October 20, 2022. It argued that its solar project should continue to avail the benefits of the concessional rate of customs duty since it had come into being before the date of the notification.</p>
<p>ReNew Hans Urja said it had submitted a continuity bond of ₹18.45 billion (~$222.71 million) and a bank guarantee worth ₹10 million (~$120,712). The decision of the Customs Board was against the rule of law and had infringed upon the developer&#8217;s right with retrospective effect, the petitioner submitted.</p>
<p>The Customs Board argued that the petitioner had not fulfilled the criteria for being accorded the concessional rate of duty.</p>
<p><strong>Court&#8217;s observation</strong><strong>  </strong></p>
<p>The High Court observed that if no interim protection were granted to the developer, the entire import process would likely get derailed. Although a letter of credit has to be established between March and April 2023, the uncertainty as to whether the petitioner would be entitled to a concessional rate of duty would perhaps delay the execution of the project.</p>
<p>It noted that ReNew Hans Urja had submitted a continuity bond for a large sum of money, along with a bank guarantee, and therefore no action should be taken against the developer at the stage of import.</p>
<p>In March this year, the Delhi High Court had <a href="https://mercomindia.com/industry-appeals-court-against-almm-mandate-ci-solar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sought</a> a clarification from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy on the provisions made to protect solar projects from the adverse impact of the mandate to use modules from the Approved List of Modules and Manufacturers (ALMM).</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Rakesh Ranjan</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Rakesh-Headshot-crop-2.jpg" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Rakesh Ranjan,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Rakesh Ranjan.</a></p>
</div>
<div class="authorboxn">
<p><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Rakesh-Headshot-crop-2.jpg" width="77" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong style="color: #00b451">Rakesh Ranjan</strong></a> is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Prior to joining Mercom, he worked in many roles as a business correspondent, assistant editor, senior content writer, and sub-editor with bcfocus.com, CIOReview/Silicon India, Verbinden Communication, and Bangalore Bias. Rakesh holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" rel="noopener noreferrer">More articles from Rakesh Ranjan.</a></p>
</div>
</div></div><div class="clearfix"></div></div></div>

Relief for Solar Developer Against Retrospective Denial of Concessional Import Duty

concessional-duty

Get the most relevant India solar and clean energy news.

RECENT POSTS