Commissioner of Customs (Port) Vs India Carbon Ltd (CESTAT Kolkata)
CESTAT Upholds DGFT Interpretation, Clears Customs Dispute on Petroleum Coke
The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Kolkata, has ruled in favor of M/s India Carbon Ltd., dismissing a customs department appeal and clarifying that a specific sulphur content standard applies to calcined petroleum coke (CPC), not the raw petroleum coke (RPC) used in its production. The verdict, stemming from a dispute over a seized RPC consignment, reinforces the authority of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) in interpreting its own import licenses.
The case, Commissioner of Customs (Port) Vs India Carbon Ltd., revolved around the interpretation of an import license condition tied to Indian Standard (IS) 17049. The customs department argued that the raw material being imported by India Carbon Ltd. did not meet the sulphur content limits outlined in the standard, leading to the seizure of the goods. India Carbon, a company that processes RPC into CPC, countered that the standard was applicable to the final product and not the raw feedstock.
The dispute began after the Central Government amended its import policy for petroleum coke in October 2018, following a directive from the Supreme Court. The new policy allowed calciners to import RPC under a licensing system, with quotas recommended by an Expert Committee. India Carbon was granted a license by the DGFT to import 37,777.31 metric tons of RPC for the financial year 2021-2022. The license described the goods as “Raw Petroleum Coke for Anode making in Aluminum Industry conforming to standard IS 17049.”
