2004 (11) TMI 357 - AT - Central Excise

Summary

Issues:
- Appeal against Adjudication Order demanding duty on Horton Spheres and Petals.
- Contention of appellants regarding the nature of Horton Spheres.
- Previous Tribunal order remanding the matter for duty quantification.
- Revenue's argument against challenging excisability post remand.
- Tribunal's analysis of the previous order and excisability issue.
- Decision on the excisability of Horton Sphere based on previous Tribunal ruling.

Analysis:
The appellants filed an appeal against the Adjudication Order demanding duty on Horton Spheres and Petals, claiming these are massive storage tanks used for storing LPG or similar hydrocarbons. They cited a previous Tribunal decision to support their argument. The Revenue contended that since a previous appeal was remanded for duty quantification only, the appellants couldn't challenge the excisability of the goods. However, the Tribunal reviewed the previous order and found that the issue of excisability was not addressed during the remand process. Therefore, the Revenue's argument was deemed meritless.

The Tribunal referred to a previous case involving I.C.B. (P) Ltd. v. Collector of Central Excise, Baroda, where it was established that no manufacturing process took place after the supply of components for Horton Spheres. The Tribunal concluded that at the point of installation and erection of the spheres, no distinct identifiable product had been manufactured for the purpose of excise duty. Based on this previous ruling, the Tribunal set aside the impugned order and allowed the appeal filed by the appellants. The decision was made in favor of the appellants, considering the established legal precedent regarding the excisability of Horton Spheres.