Vietnam’s VinFast Auto has recently released a statement related to India’s latest EV policy, hinting at its intentions to commence operations in the country with imported, premium electric SUVs at “inclusive prices”.
VinFast Auto earlier committed to the Indian market by beginning work at a new vehicle production facility in the state of Tamil Nadu.
Informing about the new policy, VinFast said in a statement, “We highly value the Indian government’s new EV scheme as it aims to drive large investments in manufacturing, create competencies and upskilling, set up a robust supply chain and offer consumers world-class, zero tailpipe emission vehicles. With a long-term growth commitment in India, we have pledged an expenditure of $500 million, which includes the electric vehicle manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu. This forward-looking policy [will] help us introduce a wide variety of smart, green, premium-quality SUVs, at inclusive prices, along with outstanding after-sales policies.”
It is worth mentioning here that at the beginning of 2024, VinFast inked an MoU with the Tamil Nadu government, committing an initial investment of $500 million (approximately Rs 4,160 crore) for the first five years.
Under the new EV policy, the government will slash import duty from 100 percent to just 15 percent for imported electric vehicles with a cost, insurance, and freight (CIF) value of $35,000 (Rs 29 lakh) and above, provided their respective manufacturers commit to making a minimum investment of $500 million (approx. Rs 4,150 crore) to set up local manufacturing within three years.
Additionally, during this period, the government will permit the import of a maximum of 40,000 EVs at the lowered import duty, roughly amounting to 8,000 EVs a year.
This new policy is also expected to pave the way for Tesla’s entry into India. Tesla lovers in the country are anxiously waiting for the first response from Elon Musk after the government approved a new electric vehicle (EV) policy that is designed to attract investments in the EV space by global manufacturers like the Musk-run electric car company.
Ms Kalinga