LAHORE: Pakistan Steel Melters Association (PSMA) drawing the attention towards expanding unregistered small furnaces which are producing ingots and MS long products while being run on B-2 electricity tariff pushing the formal and registered sector out of competition.
As many as 1500 such small furnaces are working in Lahore alone which should be brought into tax net as formal sector because of their cheap goods and non-payment of proper levies to the Government exchequer.
The Association in its proposals for the budget 2021-22, further called for registering all the steel traders and scrap dealers throughout the country under sales tax regime. It said that steel traders or scrap dealers are given relief from sales tax on sales over 100 million per annum. However, the Association feel that all dealers or traders will show their sales below that benchmark thus depriving the country of proper revenue and putting the steel industry into embarrassment as these traders or scrap dealers could not be forced to give their CNIC on any sale/purchase.
The Association also suggested that this sector may be given approval of using 800 units against production of one ton of billet. The sector already has permission of consuming 700 units, but keeping in view the condition of furnaces and quality of scrap being utilized by these units, they do not consume less than 800 units of electricity for producing one ton of billets.
The Association requesting bringing down turnover tax from 1.50 to 0.5% said this sector is a high volume, highly capital intensive and low margin industry. The proposal said present rate is very high especially keeping in view that it is to be paid whether industry is operating in profit or loss.—PR
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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