The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has taken a new initiative to recover the long-standing arrears of customs and taxes of state-owned Bangladesh Oil, Gas & Mineral Corporation (PetroBangla).
To this end, it has recently written to the Finance Ministry requesting for the immediate relief of the arrears of Tk3,278 crore.
According to relevant sources, PetroBangla's total arrears of customs and taxes between 2009 and 2015 stood at Tk13,278 crore.
Due to non-payment for a long time, an agreement was reached between the NBR and the Finance Ministry to settle the matter.
Under that agreement, Petrobangla has taken a loan from the Finance Ministry in the last two fiscal years and repaid Tk10,000 crore.
Now, the Finance Ministry's assistance has been sought again to pay the remaining Tk3,278 crore.
In a joint meeting of the Finance Division, Energy Division, PetroBangla, and Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) held at the NBR in May 2024, it was decided to pay the arrears in stages through 'book adjustment'. According to that decision, there was a plan to settle the entire arrears within the current fiscal year.
However, the pressure of new arrears has increased further. According to the documents, PetroBangla's new arrears in the 52 months from December 2021 to March 2026 have stood at about Tk22,268.93 crore.
As a result, the burden of revenue arrears on the company, old and new, is becoming increasingly heavy.
PetroBangla sources said that they are trying to pay customs duties and taxes against imported gas. However, it has become difficult for them to pay this huge amount of liability in one go.
According to experts, the large revenue arrears of important state-owned companies including PetroBangla are worrying for the country's macroeconomics.
If this money is recovered, it can play an important role in addressing the government's budget deficit.
Currently, the NBR is awaiting the approval of the Finance Ministry. It is reported that the process of adjusting the outstanding Tk3,278 crore will begin once the ministry approves it.
