Semirara Mining and Power's (PSE:SCC) tax-exempt status on fuel imports has been upheld by the Supreme Court of the Philippines, according to a decision issued on Jan. 20 and released last week.
Under the ruling, the government has been mandated to refund 27.3 million Philippine pesos collected as value-added tax to the company.
The high court's Third Division upheld an earlier Court of Tax Appeals ruling in favor of the mining company after rejecting a petition filed by the Internal Revenue commissioner.
The Local Government Code is limited to local government taxation and does not extend to national internal revenue taxes, Associate Justice Maria Filomena D. Singh wrote in the ruling.