In re Suzlon Energy Ltd (GST AAAR Gujarat)
The Gujarat Appellate Authority for Advance Ruling (GST AAAR) addressed whether specially designed transformers supplied along with wind turbine generators (WTGs) by Suzlon Energy Ltd. qualify as parts of WTGs and are eligible for tax exemptions under Notification No. 1/2017-CT (Rate). The AAAR upheld the earlier ruling by the Gujarat Authority for Advance Ruling (GAAR), stating that such transformers, despite performing dual functions of step-down and step-up transformation, do not constitute parts of WTGs as per the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy’s guidelines and relevant circulars.
The AAAR emphasized that the Ministry’s exclusion of transformers from the list of WTG components undermines Suzlon Energy’s argument. The appellant’s reliance on common parlance or popular meaning to classify transformers as part of WTGs was deemed unsupportable without substantive evidence. Additionally, previous judicial rulings cited by Suzlon Energy, primarily pertaining to other contexts like depreciation under income tax laws, were found irrelevant to the present dispute.
The AAAR also dismissed the appellant’s reliance on Supreme Court judgments, highlighting that these were based on different laws and circumstances unrelated to the current case. Strict interpretation of exemption notifications was reiterated, aligning with the Supreme Court’s precedent in the Dilip Kumar and Company case. The authority ruled that transformers are not part of WTGs and, therefore, ineligible for tax benefits under the specified exemptions. Consequently, the appeal was rejected, affirming the GAAR’s earlier decision.
