Home Case Index All Cases Customs Customs + AT Customs - 2022 (6) TMI AT This
Forgot password New User/ Regiser ⇒ Register to get Live Demo
2022 (6) TMI 217 - AT - CustomsExemption from CVD - Classification of imported goods - Iron Ore (fines) or Iron Ore (concentrate) - Whether the process of crushing and screening undertaken on the Iron Ore after it was mined at Carajas, Para, Brazil and its subsequent blending at Oman with 5-10% iron ore concentrate, would result in the goods imported being classifiable under CTI 2601 11 50 as Iron Ore concentrate, as against CTI 2601 11 31 for Iron Ore fines? - benefit of the exemption from payment of CVD at Serial. No. 56 of notification available to the imported goods or not - burden on the appellant to establish its entitlement to exemption under the notification dated 17.3.2012 or the said burden had shifted on the Department, since the benefit of the exemption had been extended not only at the time of clearance of the imported goods but also at the time of finalisation of the provisional assessment? HELD THAT:- In the instant case, both the show cause notice as also the impugned order, after extracting the pictorial representation from the global website of Vale International have categorically asserted that the mined ore at Carajas, Para, Brazil underwent two preparatory processes mainly crushing and screening at Carajas, Para, Brazil, before shipment of the same. It is evident from the aforesaid pictorial representation of the stage-wise extraction process of Iron Ores, that there are total of 11 stages involved from the extraction of the ore from the Carajas Mine to its shipment from Brazil. These sequential stages are titled in the pictorial representation as Infrastructure, Extraction, Transport, Crushing, Conveyor Belt, Screening, Stockyard, Recovery, Loading, Rotary car dumpers and Shipment. Out of these 11 stages, only 2 stages deal with physically preparing the ore for shipment, which are crushing and screening. In the process of crushing, the ore which has been mined and is in the shape of a boulder/uneven blocks of upto 15 meters, is crushed using a primary crusher into smaller size - The pictorial representation records that Vale has 17 production lines at its screening site, where the crushed ore is sorted basis the size of the crushed ore. It needs to be noticed that both, the show cause notice and the impugned order, have in passing, contended that processes, beyond crushing and screening, have been undertaken on the Iron Ore at Carajas, Para, Brazil. However, no evidence has been led to even suggest, let alone prove, that other processing had taken place at Carajas, Para, Brazil. The burden to prove that processes beyond crushing and screening had been carried out was on the Revenue, but it failed to establish. It is, therefore, not possible to accept the said contention of the Revenue. Whether Iron Ore Carajas Sohar supplied from Oman, which is a blend of Iron Ore Carajas and Iron Ore concentrate, in which the proportion of Iron Ore Carajas is 90-95% and that of Iron Ore concentrate is 5-10%, is a concentrate or not? - HELD THAT:- The process of blending/mixing undertaken at Oman is a physical process where iron ore fines from the Carajas mines are mixed with iron ore concentrates from the Southeastern System in the ratio of 90-95% of iron ore fines from Carajas and 5-10% of Iron Ore concentrate. In this process, there is no removal of part or whole of the foreign matter and, therefore, the same cannot be said to be a special treatment resulting in the ore becoming a concentrate. This apart, the blend of iron ore fines (90-95%) with iron ore concentrate (5-10%) would, by applying Note 3(b) to the General Rules of Interpretation to the Import Tariff, be classified as iron ore fines, as the essential character to the mixture is derived from the iron ore fines. The impugned order, however, holds that Vale International was using water for removal of impurities. This finding has been arrived at by an incorrect extrapolation of the pictorial representation in the impugned order. It needs to be noted that the show cause notice had not made any reference to the aforesaid pictorial extract from the website. It is on the bases of the incorrect pictorial representation that the impugned order holds that at Cajaras, Vale was using several equipment such as filters, pumps, thickeners, magnetic separators, floatation column for removal of impurities. It is evident from the website of Vale that conventionally, where the ore is of a low grade, the use of water and equipment such as filters, pumps, thickeners, magnetic separators, floatation column, in addition to crushers and screens is envisaged. There can be no basis to impute any certainty that alumina to silica ratio would always be greater than 1 in case of natural ores. The appellant had, in the reply, demonstrated that naturally occurring high grade iron ores, even in India at the Bacheli and Bailadila of NMDC have the alumina to silica ratio less than 1. The impugned order as also the evidence relied in support of the same have not disputed this position. The report of Dr. Rathod could not, therefore, have been relied upon to hold that what had been imported by the appellant was Iron ore that had been concentrated. The contents of the letter dated 28.04.2016 of Shri D.K. Swamy, Administrative Officer in the Indian Bureau of Mines are contrary to the opinion of the Ministry of Mines, as communicated of the Circular dated 17.02.2012. The process of crushing and screening undertaken on the Iron Ore after they have been mined at Carajas, Brazil and subsequent blending at Oman with 5-10% iron ore concentrate would result in classification of the goods imported under CTI 2601 11 31 as Iron Ore fines and would consequently be entitled to the benefit of exemption from payment of CVD under the notification dated 17.03.2012. Appeal allowed.
|