Essar Oil Limited (EOL) has received a demand notice from the tax authorities of the Gujarat government, for repayment of sales tax deferment benefits utilised by the company, to the tune of Rs 6,300 crore with payable interest.
"Subsequent to the decision of the Supreme Court on January 17, 2012, relating to repayment of deferred sales tax, the company has received a demand notice for repayment of the full amount of deferment benefit utilised by the company, plus interest accrued," the company said in a filing with the exchanges.
The company statement further stated, "The company is in discussion with the Gujarat government regarding a repayment schedule and is in the process of filing a petition, seeking a review of the decision in the Supreme Court."
EOL also made it clear that it would take around 60-90 days to complete the discussions with the Gujarat government and to receive an outcome on the review petition with the Supreme Court.
"As clarified in previous disclosures, Essar Oil has already made provision for repaying part of the sales tax deferment liability. This liability has been assigned to a third party. As of December 31, 2011, the amount assigned is Rs 1,800 crore. This amount is repayable to Essar Oil to meet any payments of the deferred tax benefit in accordance with the terms of agreement," the company statement said.
EOL shares closed at Rs 61.40 on the Bombay Stock Exchange on Tuesday, down 1.92 per cent against previous close.