: The State Cabinet decided on Wednesday to waive Kerala Value Added Tax on natural gas supplied to Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore, raising the prospects of an immediate revival of the company, which is under The Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction net and faces serious financial trouble.
Chairman and Managing Director of the public sector company Jaiveer Srivastava said it was a “win-win situation” for both Kerala and FACT as he thanked Union Fertilizer Minister Ananth Kumar; Chief Minister Oommen Chandy; Industries Minister P.K. Kunhalikutty and Minister for Public Works V. K. Ebrahim Kunju, who is also the local MLA.
The waiver of K-VAT translates into savings of about US$1.87 per mmBtu of natural gas for FACT at the current price of US$15.34. This is the lowest price for FACT and the actual savings may range between US$1.87 and three, depending on the price of natural gas.
The State government will be foregoing about Rs. 103 crore per year. .
FACT land
The State government has also asked FACT for 150 acres of land for the proposed petroleum coke-based power plant. However, Mr. Srivastava said the Board of FACT had earlier rejected the request but that the issue was open for discussions between the Union and the State governments.
FACT too has land requirements considering that it has drawn up big plans for its future growth and diversification. The Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction has recommended a package of Rs. 991 crore for the company and it is being considered by the Union Government.
