Can India Meet Its Electric Car Goal By 2030?
India has vowed only to sell electric vehicles by 2030. To try and meet this goal, the government has agreed to bear up to 60% of the research and development costs for new electric car technology. It is estimated that switching to electric vehicles will save India $60 billion in energy costs by the deadline.
Tony Seba from Stanford University points out that India was the fastest country to adopt the smartphone, and the same could happen with electric cars. However, McKinsey & Co’s Director, Rajat Dhawan believes that a more realistic estimate is that 40% of all new cars sold will be electric by 2030. In the meantime, petroleum-electric hybrid vehicles are a short-term solution to assist with the transition from petroleum and diesel fuelled vehicles to fully electric models.
Over the past few years, there has been a 37.5% rise in the sale of electric vehicles in India. In July this year, the Managing Director of Mercedes Benz encouraged the government to provide incentives to manufacture electric cars and stated that Mercedes Benz could introduce electric vehicles to India by 2020.
Electric vehicles will provide enormous benefits in terms of air pollution and financial savings. They cost up to 10 times less than internal combustion vehicles and emit 95 percent fewer pollutants. The transition will also lead to improved health. Currently, 1.2 million deaths occur per year in India from inhaling toxic fumes. Furthermore, as the world’s third largest oil consumer, India would benefit from reduced imports.
Ministers and bureaucrats will be the first to transition to electric vehicles, with plans to buy 1,000 of them by November. Energy Efficiency Services Ltd will float a tender Request for Proposals this week for 10,000 battery powered cars as well as 3,000 AC and 1,000 DC charging points. Energy Minister, Piyush Goyal said that subsidies will be also offered for the first few years.
Companies wanting to take advantage of government research and development tax incentives for electric vehicle technology will need to check their eligibility and can contact Swanson Reed R&D Tax Consultants for a free assessment.
