Norway vs Petrolia Noco AS, May 2022, Court of Appeal, Case No LB-2022-18585

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In 2011, Petrolia SE established a wholly owned subsidiary in Norway – Petrolia Noco AS – to conduct oil exploration activities on the Norwegian shelf. From the outset, Petrolia Noco AS received a loan from the parent company Petrolia SE. The written loan agreement was first signed later on 15 May 2012. The loan limit was originally MNOK 100 with an agreed interest rate of 3 months NIBOR with the addition of a margin of 2.25 percentage points. When the loan agreement was formalized in writing in 2012, the agreed interest rate was changed to 3 months NIBOR with the addition of an interest margin of 10 percentage points. The loan limit was increased to MNOK 150 in September 2012, and then to MNOK 330 in April 2013.

In the tax return for 2012 and 2013, Petrolia Noco AS demanded a full deduction for actual interest costs on the intra-group loan to the parent company Petrolia SE.
An assessment was issued by the tax authorities for these years, where the interest deductions had been partially disallowed. The assessment for these years was later upheld in court.

For FY 2014, 2015 and 2016, Petrolia Noco AS had also claimed a full deduction for actual interest costs on the entire intra-group loan to the parent company. It is the assessment for these years that is the subject of dispute in this case.

The assessment was first brought to the Court of Oslo where a decision in favour of the tax authorities was issued in November 2021.

This decision was appealed by Petrolia Noco AS to the Court of Appeal.

Judgement of the Court

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal and decided in favour of the Norwegian tax authorities.

Excerpts

“The Court of Appeal also agrees with the state that neither the cost plus method nor a rationality analysis can be considered applicable in this case. With the result the Court of Appeal has reached so far, the CUP method should be preferred – in line with the OECD guidelines.
After this, in summary, it appears clear that the interest margin on the intra-group loan is significantly higher than in a comparable and independent market and thus not an arm’s length price. The higher interest implies a reduction in the appellant’s income, cf. Tax Act section 13-1 first paragraph. The Court of Appeal cannot see that the adjustments claimed by the appellant change this. In the Court of Appeal’s view, it is also clear that the reduction in income has its cause in the community of interest. Whether adjustments should be made to the basis of comparison at the time of the price change, the Court of Appeal comes back to when assessing the exercise of discretion.
Consequently, there was access to a discretionary determination of the appellant’s income according to Section 13-1 first paragraph of the Tax Act, also with regard to the interest margin.”


“In the Court of Appeal’s view, additional costs that would have been incurred by independent parties, but which are not relevant in the controlled transaction, must be disregarded. Reference is made to the OECD guidelines (2020) point C.1.2.2, section 10.96:
In considering arm’s length pricing of loans, the issue of fees and charges in relation to the loan may arise. Independent commercial lenders will sometimes charge fees as part of the terms and conditions of the loan, for example arrangement fees or commitment fees in relation to an undrawn facility. If such charges are seen in a loan between associated enterprises, they should be evaluated in the same way as any other intra-group transaction. In doing so, it must be borne in mind that independent lenders’ charges will in part reflect costs incurred in the process of raising capital and in satisfying regulatory requirements, which associated enterprises might not incur.
The decisive factor is whether the costs or rights that the effective interest margin in the observed exploration loans between independent parties is an expression of, are also relevant in the intra-group loan.
As far as the Court of Appeal understands, the appellant does not claim that various fees or costs incurred in exploration loans from a bank have been incurred in the intra-group loan, and in any case no evidence has been provided for this. In the Court of Appeal’s view, such costs and fees are therefore not relevant in the comparison. The appellant, on the other hand, has stated that the loan limit that Petrolia SE had made available, and the fact that the loan limit was increased if necessary, means that a so-called “commitment fee”, which accrues in loans between independent parties where an unused credit facility is provided, must be considered built into the agreed interest rate. In the Court of Appeal’s view, Petrolia SE cannot be considered to have had any obligation to make a loan limit available or to increase the loan limit if necessary. It appears from the loan agreement point 3.2 that the lender could demand repayment of the loan at its own discretion. The appellant has stated that this did not entail any real risk for the borrower. It is probably conceivable that Petrolia SE did not intend for this clause to be used, and that the appellant had an expectation of this. In this sense, it was a reality in the loan framework. However, it is clear, and acknowledged by the appellant, that the point of financing the appellant through loans rather than higher equity was Petrolia SE’s need for flexibility. Thus, it appears to the Court of Appeal that it is clear that the appellant had no unconditional right to the unused part of the loan limit. The Court of Appeal therefore believes that the Board of Appeal has not made any mistakes by comparing with nominal interest margins.
On this basis, the Court of Appeal can also see no reason why it should have been compared with the upper tier of the observed nominal interest margins in the exploration loans between independent parties. In general, an average such as the Appeal Board has built on must be assumed to take into account both positive and negative possible variables in the uncontrolled exploration loans in a reasonable manner.
This Court of Appeal agrees with these assessments, which are considered relevant also for the income years 2014-2016.
The Court of Appeal cannot see that there is otherwise anything to indicate that the discretion is arbitrary or grossly unreasonable.”

 

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Norway vs Petrolia NOCO AS - LB-2022-18585

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