Both onshore and offshore oil and gas drilling projects have been granted import duty and value-added tax exemptions by the China’s Ministry of Finance. The exemptions have been granted to the importation, within established quotas, of equipment, instruments, spare parts and special tools that are unable to be manufactured in China, and are directly used in exploration and exploitation. The exemptions will be effective for five years from January 1 this year to December 31, 2015.
It has also been specified that the exemptions are available only for approved oil and gas projects on:
- Land in China’s deserts,
- Onshore and offshore exploration being undertaken on a joint venture basis between Chinese and foreign companies, and
- In other approved maritime and continental-shelf offshore blocks.
