The Otago Regional Council has received requests from two irrigation companies in Central Otago asking for their rates to be remitted, after a change in valuation procedures.
In a recently tabled ORC report, ORC director corporate services Nick Donnelly said these irrigation schemes had been rated for the first time in the 2015-16 year.
This was after a directive from the Valuer-general's office that these utilities should be ''valued and therefore rated'', Mr Donnelly said.
Quotable Value (QV) had carried out valuations and these capital values had been used to strike rates for the financial year ending on June 30 next year.
The irrigation companies were disputing the valuation undertaken by QV and discussions about the ''correct valuation'' were continuing.
The Central Otago District Council and the Waitaki District Council had decided to remit rates for these companies, and the ORC had been asked ''to consider doing the same''.
''Requests to remit rates are uncommon, and rates have not been remitted in the past,'' he wrote.
''Council requires payment of rates as struck and invoiced,'' he said in the report.
But if the valuations were amended, the ORC would ''adjust the rates and refund accordingly'', he said.
