Current Report No.: 33/2020

Date of preparation: 22.09.2020

Abbreviated name of the Issuer: CIECH S.A.

Subject: The Ruling of the Provincial Administrative Court in Krakow to uphold the tax decision regarding VAT.

Legal basis: Art. 17.1 of the MAR - inside information

Report:

The Management Board of CIECH S.A. (the “Company” or “Issuer”) herewith informs that today the Provincial Administrative Court in Krakow (the “WSA”) dismissed the complaint lodged by CIECH Soda Polska S.A. (the “Subsidiary” respectively) and upheld the decision of the Head of the Małopolskie Province Customs and Tax Office in Krakow of 24 December 2019 (the “Decision”). The ruling of the WSA is not final. The Decision was communicated by the Issuer in its Current Report No. 3/2020 of 7 January 2020.

The Subsidiary and its advisors do not agree with the position expressed in the WSA ruling. The Subsidiary intends to take further procedural steps in order to defend the tax consequences of its 2014 operations by lodging a complaint with the Supreme Administrative Court (the “NSA”).

The Management Board of the Subsidiary is in the process of analysing the WSA ruling in terms of the rationale for creating a provision for the amount of interest paid (the “Interest”) of PLN 10,034 thousand, which was recognised, at the time of its payment, as receivables in the financial statements. The creation of such provision, if any, would reduce the consolidated financial result, however, it would not involve the need to pay any additional amounts, as the tax liability (the “Tax Liability”), along with the Interest, has already been paid.

• The Tax Liability of PLN 25,277 thousand was settled by the Subsidiary on 24 August 2018, upon receipt of the result of the tax audit. Contrary to the WSA position, the Subsidiary’s opinion is that the Tax Liability paid was settled correctly.
• The Tax Liability, along with the Interest, was repaid on 13 January 2020, in order to avoid compulsory enforcement and the related expenses. The Issuer informed on the re-payment in its Current Report No. 4/2020 of 10 January 2020. 
• The Subsidiary ought to recover the repaid Tax Liability, along with the Interest, following the ruling of the Supreme Administrative Court (NSA), provided that the court overrules the Decision. 
• However, should the NSA dismiss the cassation complaint of the Subsidiary and uphold the Decision, the Tax Liability will be refunded after the overpayment proceedings for July 2018 have been completed. 

The Issuer informed on the pending proceedings in:

• its Current Reports Nos. 26/2019 of 17 July 2019, 39/2019 of 11 September 2019, 3/2020 of 7 January 2020, and 4/2020 of 10 January 2020. 
• the consolidated statements of the CIECH Group. In the extended consolidated financial statements of the CIECH Group for the first quarter of 2020, these proceedings are described in Note 2.13, in the section “Audits of tax settlements in the CIECH Group”, in the paragraph “VAT audit for December 2014 at Cerium Finance Sp. z o.o.” 

Legal basis: Article 17.1 of the Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU) No. 596/2014 of 16 April 2014 on Market Abuse (the Market Abuse Regulation) and repealing Directive 2003/6/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Directives 2003/124/EC, 2003/125/EC and 2004/72/EC (Official Journal of the European Union L No. 173, p. 1).

Signatures of the Company’s representatives:: 

Mirosław Skowron - Member of the Management Board
Jarosław Romanowski - Member of the Management Board