[TusharK]

Amitabh Kant, CEO, Niti Aayog has told the media that the government would support the electric vehicle (EV) industry by giving incentives such as lower road tax. The move is likely to boost manufacturing and sales of EVs in India.



The head of the Niti Aayog said that without affecting the production of combustion vehicles, India must become a major manufacturing hub for EVs, batteries and inter-operable charging stations.

He also pointed out that by 2027-28, the cost of EV batteries will be reduced from US $ 273 per kWh to US $ 73 per kWh. After taking into consideration the demand from the Indian market, the prices should come down to US $ 60 per kWh. Furthermore, the adoption of EVs and shared vehicles could save US $ 60 billion in fuel costs by 2030.

The government of India had earlier announced its aim to reduce the country’s dependence on fossil fuels and transition to 100% electric mobility by 2030.

Source: The Economic Times

[i74js]

The EV to gain momentum would require a greater push even beyond capital subsidy or tax incentives.

Green fuel such as CNG is still struggling after 2 decades and dictate from Supreme Court of India. The infrastructure is no where close to the conventional fuels and there are geographical boundaries within which a CNG vehicle can operate (no fuel dispensing facility outside of boundary).

This paradigm shift cannot happen unless the state and central governments along with corporate firmly believe in the technology and its outreach over a period of time and stay invested with their decision for this technology push.

Push by one or two odd car makers will stay peripatetic and cannot go mainstream. Government can only supplement.

[lamborghini]

According to the last issue of AutocarIndia with the upcoming launches, I was quite surprised to see the premium the new proposed EV vehicles will charge over their combustion engine counterparts (like the Tata Tigor, etc.)

The Govt. will really have to subsidize the technology and also subsidize infrastructure providers to make the EV movement a success - not just road tax.

IMO a great starting point would have been to have different rates of taxes on Combustion engines (the highest), Hybrids (in the middle), and EVs (no taxes initially) - but unfortunately the Govt. doesn't work like that as we saw with the GST Fiasco which has killed several Hybrids in the marketplace and will act as a barrier for manufacturers to bring this tech down to the mass market vehicles.

Point being - while EV vehicles get a great tax benefit, they need to start by relooking at taxes on Hybrids because those will impact mass market vehicles a lot more as it is a significantly more affordable tech than full Electric - thus making conversion easier.

Imagine how much cleaner the air would be if most of the taxis in congested cities were hybrids as compared to diesel/petrol/CNG - just because their daily running would result in very few instances of the combustion engine kicking in.

[Vishnuk]

Originally Posted by lamborghini

IMO a great starting point would have been to have different rates of taxes on Combustion engines (the highest), Hybrids (in the middle), and EVs (no taxes initially) - but unfortunately the Govt. doesn't work like that as we saw with the GST Fiasco which has killed several Hybrids in the marketplace and will act as a barrier for manufacturers to bring this tech down to the mass market vehicles.

I completely agree with you on this point. Taxation needs to be lower for Hybrids.
But then there also has to be a clear classification on what can be called a Hybrid, manufacturers like Maruti, Mahindra released their own Micro Hybrid vehicles which were not hybrid (in true sense) and availed tax benefits which prevailed at the time, meant for true hybrid cars like the Toyota Prius.

Unless there is a clear definition on what kind of cars would be eligible for Hybrid tax benefits, even if the govt reduces the taxation for Hybrid cars this type of Jugaad will start again, which kind of defeats the whole purpose.

[MercFan]

Maruti Suzuki unveils electric cars roadmap by 2020.

Full details here:
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/62193231.cms

[volkman10]

Ford, Suzuki to get incentives under India's $3.5 bln clean fuel scheme.

The incentives will range from 8% to 18% of the sales value of the vehicles or components, and will be given to companies if they meet certain conditions such as a minimum investment over five years and 10% growth in sales each year

The ministry of heavy industries said it has approved applications from 20 companies which also include Kia Motors , Tata Motors , Mahindra & Mahindra and Softbank-Group Ola Electric.

Ford last year decided to stop selling cars in India but has still retained its two factories in the country. The automaker is exploring the possibility of using one of its plants in India as a base to produce electric cars for export.

Tata Motors said it is committed "to shape India's vehicular landscape with smart and sustainable mobility solutions.

A total of 115 automakers and auto part makers applied for the incentives scheme. The government will announce the final list of auto component makers at a later date.


Link