With Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman gearing up to present the Union Budget 2024-25 on July 23, industry leaders from energy and EV have their hopes set high. The upcoming budget, under the third tenure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is expected to be ‘futuristic’ according to President Droupadi Murmu.
Talking about the expectation of the EV industry from budget and FAME III subsidy, Aryaman Tandon, Managing Partner & Co-Founder, Praxis Global Alliance says, “The Electric Vehicle (EV) market in India, though still in its early stages, has seen significant growth, driven by multiple government initiatives. These include tax incentives for EV owners, the establishment of public charging infrastructure, the PLI scheme for local manufacturing, and incentives under the FAME I and II schemes. The FAME II scheme alone supported the sale of over 1.4 million electric two-wheelers (e2Ws), 175,000 electric three-wheelers (e3Ws), and 20,000 electric four-wheelers (e4Ws), increasing EV penetration to over 5 percent for e2Ws and 2 percent for e4Ws.”
He added, “To reach its ambitious target of 30 percent EV penetration by 2030, continued government support is essential. As EV manufacturers invest heavily in research and development to reduce costs, government assistance is needed to make EVs more affordable and narrow the price gap with internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. The industry also hopes that the FAME scheme will expand to include private buses and commercial vehicles (CVs), which have so far been limited to State Transport Undertakings (STUs). Reducing customs duties on imported EV components as well as supporting local R&D in battery technology and other fields, as seen in the last budget, will further accelerate local manufacturing and create jobs. Additionally, subsidizing EV financing and simplifying the GST structure on EV components and batteries will reduce costs and make EVs more accessible to consumers.”
“As we continue this growth in EV adoption, ongoing government support through EV sales incentive/subsidy for consumers and automakers, simplified tax structure, subsidized financing, and a boost to local manufacturing will help achieve the net-zero emissions goal.,” he concluded.