Thailand
Thailand: Pure alcohol tax gets pro tem waiver
The Excise Department has temporarily exempted tax levied on pure alcohol while the government has unlocked the requirement to free 3 million litres of alcohol left over from energy usage to encourage the manufacture of alcohol-based hand sanitisers to meet strong demand amid Covid-19 fears.
The tax exemption only applies to pure alcohol used to produce hand sanitiser free of charge to the public, said Patchara Anuntasilpa, director-general of the department.
At present, the agency levies one baht per litre for pure alcohol, while three groups — the state-owned Liquor Distillery Organisation, those who produce 80-degree alcohol or above, and ethanol producers for fuel — use pure alcohol in Thailand.
Only state agencies and those verified by state units are qualified to produce free alcohol-based hand sanitisers, he said.
The tax waiver will run until Sept 30, but it could be extended if the coronavirus outbreak is not contained, said Mr Patchara.
He said the Excise Department will ask for 300,000 litres of pure alcohol from local manufacturers to give one litre to each person at excise offices across the country.
“There is not a shortage of alcohol-based hand sanitiser, but we issued the announcement as a precaution to cut costs and enable people to use hand sanitiser to prevent Covid-19,” said Mr Patchara.
There are 26 ethanol manufacturing plants with a combined production capacity of 7 million litres a day in Thailand, of which four are used to supply for fuel consumption.
“Alcohol demand in other industries, including for hygiene and cleaning products has surged, so the Finance and Energy ministries jointly agreed to allow 3 million litres of alcohol left over from energy usage to produce alcohol for sanitisers,” he said.
The measure supports not only ethanol manufacturers but also farmers who grow sugar cane and cassava, which are used as raw materials for ethanol, said Mr Patchara. The Energy Ministry continues to manage supply and demand of local ethanol and avoid an impact on the country’s energy sector, he said.
Source: https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/1875379/pure-alcohol-tax-gets-pro-tem-waiver