Joaquim Pedro Lampreia is quoted by Jornal de Negócios in an article entitled "Tax authorities lose court appeal over powerplant Municipal Property Tax”. The article highlights the recent decision by the Central Administrative Court (TCA) of the North of Portugal, which exempted wind farm towers from the calculation of Municipal Property Tax (IMI).

The court concluded that wind turbine towers are part of the powerplant equipment and therefore should not be included in the taxable patrimonial value (VPT) used to calculate IMI. Joaquim Pedro Lampreia explained to Jornal de Negócios that ‘this is a decision that explains very well something that stems from peaceful jurisprudence and also from common sense: that IMI is not charged on equipment’.

This decision has now come to light due to a case won by VdA regarding a powerplant in the Viseu area with around fifteen wind turbines. According to Jornal de Negócios, the tax value of the powerplant, which included the towers in the valuation, was approximately 4.4 million euros. The decision represents a significant milestone for companies in the sector, limiting the scope of IMI applied to powerplants.

• This article is available here.