Include natural gas under GST: Industry

Natural gas is currently outside the ambit of GST, and existing legacy taxes -- central excise duty, state VAT, central sales tax -- continue to be applicable on the fuel

New Delhi: The government should bring natural gas under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime to realise Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for a gas-based economy and raising the share of the environment-friendly fuel in India’s energy basket, the industry has said.

Natural gas is currently outside the ambit of GST, and existing legacy taxes — central excise duty, state VAT, central sales tax — continue to be applicable on the fuel.

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“Non-inclusion of natural gas under GST regime is having adverse impact on its prices due to stranding of taxes in the hands of gas producers/suppliers and is also impacting natural gas-based industries due to stranding of legacy taxes paid on it,” the Federation of Indian Petroleum Industry (FIPI) said. In a pre-Budget memorandum to the Finance Ministry, FIPI, which boasts of members from across the oil and gas spectrum, said the value-added tax (VAT) rate on natural gas is very high in different States — 14.5 per cent in Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh, 15 per cent in Gujarat, 14 per cent in Madhya Pradesh.

“Since gas-based industries do not get the benefit of tax credit of VAT paid on purchases of natural gas, it is resulting in an increase in cost of production of such industrial consumers and would have an inflationary effect on the economy,” it said. Inclusion of natural gas under the GST ambit will have a positive impact on gas-based industries, promote usage of the fuel and avoid stranding of taxes, it said.

Presently, GST on service of ‘transportation of natural gas through pipeline’ is applicable at the rate of 12 per cent (with ITC benefit) and at the rate of 5 per cent (without ITC benefit). Further, as per GST laws, two different registered units of an entity are considered distinct persons and inter-unit billing for supply of goods/services between such units is required to be carried out with applicable GST. Considering such provisions under GST laws, the lower GST rate of 5 per cent (without ITC benefit) could not practically be implemented so far, FIPI said.

“Input Tax Credit (ITC) of GST payable on the inter-unit billing, for services of transportation of natural gas, will not be available to the recipient unit of GAIL,” it added.