There is also a capital tax relief in the form of a deduction of 50 percent of the fiscal value of industrial equipment. There are no specific regional incentives. In practice, this benefit is no longer being granted. However, the Industrial Promotion Law is still in force, and the government may offer this allowance in the future. The promotional benefits, which consist of cred it assistance and tax exemptions, are granted only if the current or proposed activities of the company or group of companies, or of specific industrial sectors, have been previously declared to be in the national interest by the government.
Tax exemptions vary with specific circumstances.
They may include exemption from import duties on machinery and equipment required for operations, exemption of 60 percent of the employer's social security charges in proportion to the labor cost included i n goods manufactured for export, refund of VAT on the purchase or lease of certain types of fixed assets, and exemptions from income and capital tax for several years. Most of these declarations were suspended as from December 1991. However, the Industrial Promotion Law is still in force, and the government can offer these incentives for projects that it deems to be in the national interest. All industrial activities related to hydrocarbons, including the phases of prospecting, exploitation, transportation, and marketing, are exempt from all kinds of taxes or charges in existence or to be created in the future, excluding social security contr ibutions. New or revived industries Subject to certain conditions, the government may grant exclusive privileges to individuals or companies engaged in certain new industries or the revival of industries that have been abandoned for a period of more than three years.