DUSHANBE, December 28, 2011, Asia-Plus — Obi-Zulol, a water bottling plant in Sughd province, has been exempted from paying value added tax (VAT) on new equipment delivered to the country for the launch of a new production line.
A regular sitting of the third session of the Majlisi Namoyandagon (Tajikistan’s lower chamber of parliament) of the fourth convocation, presided over by its head, Shukurjon Zuhurov, was held on December 28.
Presenting the bill requiring amendments to the law on the national budget for 2011, the Deputy Finance Minister, Jamshed Norinov noted that a total cost of equipment for processing of vegetables and fruits that was delivered to the country this year is 2 million euros, while VAT on the equipment amounted to 378,000 euros. The new production line will have an annual capacity of more than 25,000 tons of fruits and vegetables, he stressed.
For his part, the Obi-Zulol top manager Nouriddin Obidjonov noted that 60 people now work for the company and it pays taxes for a total amount of more than 12 million somoni per year. “The launch of the new production line will create new jobs,” Obidjonov said.
Obi–Zulol is a fully operational bottled water and soft drinks producer located in the northern province of Sughd. The plant was built by SASIB Beverages in 1999-2000 and financed with participation of the European bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Aqua Crystal that allowed increasing the availability of safe drinking water in Tajikistan and facilitating the transfer of technological and management know-how.
