Cabinet okays 2.9 billion baht budget to push EVs

Government Spokesman Anucha Burapachaisr said on Tuesday that the Cabinet had approved the budget for EV measures according to the Notifications of the Excise Department on March 21.

The conditions according to the notifications are:

1. Battery-electric cars with less than 10 seats and costing under 2 million baht

• Battery-electric cars with over 10 kilowatts/hour but less than 30 kilowatts/hour battery will receive a subsidy of 70,000 baht per vehicle.
• Battery-electric cars with over 30 kilowatts/hour battery will receive a subsidy of 150,000 baht per vehicle.

2. Battery-electric pickup trucks with over 30 kilowatts/hour battery, manufactured and sold domestically for less than 2 million baht will receive a subsidy of 150,000 per vehicle.

3. Battery-electric motorcycles costing under 2 million baht will receive a subsidy of 18,000 per vehicle.

Applicants must be eligible under the notifications, such as industrial operators with factories or importers appointed as official dealers.

Applicants must submit the retail price structure to the Excise Department so it can check how the subsidy will affect the price after discount. Also, they must collect proof of sale and register EVs and send them to the department every quarter.

They must make an agreement with the Excise Department to acknowledge and follow the department’s rules and conditions. They will have to repay the subsidy amount with 7.5 per cent interest per year if they fail to adhere to the conditions.

Meanwhile, the Finance Ministry reported that 18,100 EV cars and 8,800 EV motorcycles were eligible for the EV measures this year.

The measure is aimed at boosting the confidence of investors while the demand from consumers will increase.

The ministry is also encouraging the manufacturing of more battery electric vehicles to make Thailand the base for EV manufacturing while also improving the competition capability of EVs and parts.