India is set to issue additional investment guidelines under the electric vehicle (EV) policy announced in March, a government official told The Economic Times. Applications from auto companies based in countries sharing a land border with India, such as China, will undergo "much more onerous scrutiny." However, companies already established in India will not need to create new subsidiaries to apply under the policy, the official stated.
This development follows the cancellation of Tesla CEO Elon Musk's highly anticipated visit to India in April. Tesla has not yet communicated its plans to the Indian government under the new EV policy. Musk, who was scheduled to visit India on April 21-22, postponed his trip at the last moment due to "very heavy Tesla obligations." He surprisedly visited China a week later, where he met with high-ranking officials.
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“They (Tesla) are just silent… the (EV) policy was always meant for everybody,” the official told ET. “The commercial decisions are announced by the companies.”
The forthcoming guidelines will provide details on portal links and the project monitoring agency. Existing companies in India do not need to register a new subsidiary to apply under the new policy. They can apply for an import license for a certain number of EVs and must commit to investments to qualify.
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The Ministry of Heavy Industries conducted the first round of consultations on the EV policy last month. Approved on March 15, the policy offers duty concessions to companies setting up manufacturing units in India with a minimum investment of $500 million. These companies will have three years to establish manufacturing facilities and begin commercial production of EVs, with a requirement to achieve 50% domestic value addition (DVA) within five years.
Additionally, companies manufacturing passenger EVs will be permitted to import a limited number of cars at a reduced import duty of 15% on vehicles priced at $35,000 and above for a period of five years.
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