Market leading insight for tax experts
View online issue

Marathon Oil UK v HMRC

Was expenditure incurred?

In Marathon Oil UK v HMRC [2017] UKFTT 822 (13 November 2017) the FTT held that the special allowance for decommissioning was not available in circumstances where transactions had been implemented for the sole purpose of crystallising the relief early.

The commercialisation of an oil or gas field typically involves four phases: exploration and appraisal; development; production; and decommissioning. In the decommissioning phase with which this appeal was concerned the infrastructure which has been installed must be removed shut down and made safe.

Marathon Oil Decommissioning services (MODS) was incorporated as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marathon Oil UK (MOUK) which had exploited an oil field. Under a decommissioning services agreement (DSA) MOUK paid $300m to MODS in December 2008. MOUK then filed its tax return electing to have a ‘special allowance’ under CAA 2001 in relation to the payment to MODS...

If you or your firm subscribes to Taxjournal.com, please click the login box below:

If you do not subscribe but are a registered user, please enter your details in the following boxes:

Alternatively, you can register free of charge to read a limited amount of subscriber content per month.
Once you have registered, you will receive an email directing you back to read this article in full.
Please reach out to customer services at +44 (0) 330 161 1234 or 'customer.services@lexisnexis.co.uk' for further assistance.
EDITOR'S PICKstar
Top