New Delhi: The government has decided to release nearly Rs 500 crore in subsidy to electric two-wheeler manufacturers after they agreed to reimburse customers for chargers, invoiced separately from the vehicle, said government sources.
According to the sources, Ola will likely get the highest reimbursement from the Ministry of Heavy Industries—around Rs 370 crore. Ather Energy will likely get Rs 275 crore, followed by TVS at Rs 150 crore, and Hero MotoCorp at Rs 28 crore to Rs 30 crore. The remaining amount will be released once the companies submit details of the reimbursements made by them.
Ola and Ather, in public statements, said they would comply with the directive. While Ola will reimburse around Rs 130 crore to customers, Ather could refund Rs 140 crore. The EV two-wheeler makers had billed their customers separately for the vehicle and the chargers to bring the cost down below Rs 1.5 lakh—the threshold above which the subsidy stops being applicable.
The government had halted the release of subsidies worth nearly Rs 800 crore to the companies. Separately, media reports say two original equipment manufacturers (OEM)—Hero Electric and Okinawa Autotech—had their subsidies revoked after the government’s investigations revealed that the two OEMs failed to meet FAME II’s localisation criteria.
Discussion about this post