Special-purpose nuclear waste tank classification upheld under Heading 84.01, not as a general iron or steel storage tank.

A special-purpose tank manufactured for exclusive use in a nuclear reactor was held to fall outside Heading 73.09 because that heading covers iron or steel tanks not fitted with mechanical or thermal equipment. The record, including the purchase order and photographs, showed that the item was designed solely for nuclear waste storage and was fitted with thermal equipment, making it a reactor-specific component rather than a general-purpose storage tank. It was therefore classified under Heading 84.01, and the assessee's classification was upheld.

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Issues: Whether the waste storage tank manufactured for use in a nuclear reactor was classifiable under Heading 73.09 or under Heading 84.01 of the Central Excise Tariff.

Analysis: The goods were examined along with the purchase order and photographs, which showed that the item was a special-purpose tank meant exclusively for storage of nuclear waste and not a general-purpose storage tank. A tank falling under Heading 73.09 is a tank of iron or steel which is not fitted with mechanical or thermal equipment, whereas the materials on record indicated that the subject tank was fitted with thermal equipment and was designed for exclusive use as part of a nuclear reactor. On that basis, the item did not answer the description of Heading 73.09 and was more appropriately covered by Heading 84.01.

Conclusion: The tank was correctly classified under Heading 84.01 and not under Heading 73.09; the assessee's classification was upheld.

Ratio Decidendi: A special-purpose storage tank designed for exclusive use in a nuclear reactor and fitted with thermal equipment cannot be treated as a general-purpose storage tank under Heading 73.09 of the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985.

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