The government is considering to expand the steep tax breaks announced for global electric vehicle-makers last year and include investments in charging infrastructure, Mint reported. This comes ahead of Elon Musk-led Tesla's entry into the Indian market.
The Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Electric Passenger Cars in India (SPMEPCI) was notified in March 2024. It aimed to attract global automakers and strengthen India's domestic EV manufacturing ecosystem. Under the scheme, applicants are required to invest a minimum of $500 million and achieve a domestic value addition (DVA) of at least 25 percent by the end of the third year and 50 percent by the end of the fifth year.
Once eligible for the scheme, the automakers will be charged lower import duty for a fully built EV manufactured abroad. Therefore, a car priced $50,000 can be imported at a reduced duty of 15 percent, rather than the usual 100 percent.
Automakers can import up to 8,000 EVs annually under the scheme. Despite the strong incentives, not a single automaker has formally applied.
In order to boost participation under the scheme, the Ministry of Heavy Industries is now considering to allow expenditures on EV charging infrastructure to be counted as a part of the $500 million investment bar, the Mint report said.
Moneycontrol couldn't independently verify the report.
The report added that a formal decision is yet to be made on the proposal.
Also read: Tesla in India: Elon Musk's firm likely to import cars from German unit, skip China
Speaking about the potential inclusion of the EV charging infrastructure to the scheme, Ease of Doing Business executive Abhijeet Sinha told the publication that it is a "solid move to diversify foreign direct investment beyond manufacturing into charging infrastructure".
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