Govt to re-impose coal export tax
Thursday, October 19 2006 - 01:44 AM WIB
?Under the new Custom and Excise Law, government has legal basis to put levy on coal export,? the minister said shortly after the passing of Custom and Excise Law Wednesday.
Mulyani said that the new levy, which she referred to as ?outbound levy?, would ensure stability of domestic coal supply and prices.
?The state has already lost Rp.700 billion (US$=Rp.Rp.9, 150) in revenue from cancellation of coal export tax,? she said.
She did not say when the new levy will be imposed.
Government cancelled coal export tax in September 2006 after Supreme Court ruled that the levy had no valid legal base. The government previously imposed 5 percent levy on each tonne of coal exported.
Indonesian Coal Mining Association (ICMA) Chairman Jeffrey Mulyono said the plan to impose tax on coal export is a blow to Indonesian coal mining industry. ?ICMA will lobby hard to avoid imposition of such export charge cause it would has negaitive impact to national coal industry,? he told petromindo.Com Thursday.
He argued that if the government wanted to ensure price and stability for domestic supply, government could impose domestic market obligation (DMO) to coal producers. Besides, he said, first and third generation coal producers, which produce 80 percent of Indonesian coal, are shielded from paying taxes that were not stated in Coal Contract of Work (CcoW). ?This is discrimination to smaller scale coal producers,? he said.
Indonesia is currently the world?s top thermal coal producers with will export in excess of 100 million tonnes of coal this year. (alex/godang)