SMEV Seeks Efficiency Based Subsidy for EVs

SMEV opposes the current proposal of linking subsidy to the battery capacity as it does not include the efficiency of the electric vehicles as a factor.

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Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV), association of electric vehicle makers in India, has sought to link government electric vehicles subsidy to certified efficiency parameters of speed and range instead of the currently proposed battery capacity-based subsidy.

SMEV opposes the current proposal of linking subsidy to the battery capacity as it does not include the efficiency of the electric vehicles as a factor.

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To provide a remedy, SMEV also agreed to propose a method to model a subsidy under the guidelines of Central Motor Vehicle Rules (CMVR). The subsidy would mostly be based on the speed and range of the electric vehicle certified by CMVR.

Speaking to media, Director General, SMEV, Sohinder Gill said, “This directly translates into higher subsidies for EVs that consume least amount of batteries to give higher performance. The subsidies under this formula will discourage EVs with poor performance and high electricity consumption.”

Rubbishing the present proposal of subsidy, Gill said, “Anyone with a very low efficiency powertrain can get disproportionately higher subsidy merely by adding more batteries to cover up the inefficiency. Also, sports bikes and cars that pack three times the batteries to speed up to 200km/hr. may end up claiming 3 to 4 times the subsidy.”

The discussion would continue in the phase 2 of the scheme for promoting the use of electric vehicles and eco-friendly zero emission vehicles in India.

Source: PTI