Lubricating oil classification for countervailing duty upheld, with exemption benefit available on imported glass mould lubricant and colloidal graphite.

Imported glass mould lubricant and colloidal graphite in oil were treated as lubricating oil for countervailing duty purposes because the goods contained graphite and mineral oil, with mineral oil exceeding 70% by weight, and the customs classification had already been accepted. The specific tariff entry for lubricating oil was applied in preference to the residuary heading, since it covered oils ordinarily used for lubrication and excluded only hydrocarbon oil with a flash point below 94 C. The flash point test did not displace that classification, and the exemption notification used the same definition of lubricating oil as the customs notification. An Indian Oil Corporation certificate supported the conclusion, so the exemption benefit was available.

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Issues: Whether the imported glass mould lubricant and colloidal graphite in oil were correctly classifiable for countervailing duty under the specific heading for lubricating oil, rather than the residuary heading, and whether the benefit of the exemption notification was available.

Analysis: The goods were found to contain graphite and mineral oil with mineral oil exceeding 70% by weight, and the classification under the Customs Tariff had already been accepted. For countervailing duty, the governing entry was the specific heading for lubricating oil, which covered any oil ordinarily used for lubrication and excluded only hydrocarbon oil with flash point below 94 C. The record showed that the goods were lubricating oils, and the flash point test did not displace the specific classification. The definition of lubricating oil in the relevant exemption notification was identical to that in the customs notification, and the certificate from the Indian Oil Corporation supported the conclusion that the goods were lubricating oils.

Conclusion: The goods were correctly classifiable under the specific lubricating oil heading and were entitled to the exemption benefit. The department's appeal failed.

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