On 08 October 2021, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) informed the public of a Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) judgment of the Commissioner for SARS (CSARS) versus Glencore Operations SA (Pty).
The judgement in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 related to the entitlement to a Refund of Diesel Fuel Levy used for primary production in mining, and in particular the interpretation and ambit of Note 6(f)(iii) of Item 670.04 in Part 3 of Schedule No.6 to the Act,1964.
It concerned the claim by an entity engaged in mining activities for diesel rebates in respect of the period between August 2011 and 13 December 2013. The claim was disallowed by the CSARS on the grounds that the activities in respect of the claim submitted did not constitue primary production activity in mining within the ambit of Note 6(f)(iii) but related to secondary activities in mining. The SCA’s decision was to overturn the High Court ruling of the CSARS’s determination and, instead holding that Gencore’s entitlement to a refund of diesel fuel levy for the period in question be reversed.
The Judgement is available on request.