Thailand’s National Electric Vehicle Policy Committee (EV Board), chaired by Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has approved incentives to encourage companies to transition their commercial fleets of large trucks and buses to battery electric vehicles (BEV), and cash grants for EV battery cells manufacturers. The two policies will further expand the country’s supports to the whole EV ecosystem and help to reinforce its status as an EV manufacturing hub.
Thailand Committed to Electrifying Trucks and Buses
“The measures approved today will complete the so-called EV3 and EV3.5 sets of measures taken earlier for the passenger car sector, by focusing this time on large commercial vehicles,” Mr. Narit Therdsteerasukdi, Secretary General of the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI), who is also the secretary of the EV Board, told reporters at a press conference held after a Board meeting at Government House in Bangkok.
“We believe this will significantly increase the adoption of electric trucks and buses, reduce pollution from the transportation and manufacturing sectors, and support companies’ moves to reach their net-zero targets.”
According to the announcement by the Thailand Board of Investmnet, it is the first country in Southeast Asia to offer special incentives to the whole supply side as well as the demand side, and to have set a clear target under the 30@30 policy that at least 30% of the cars made in Thailand are EVs by 2030.
The support to the use of electric powered buses and trucks will come in the form of special tax deduction granted to companies eligible under this scheme, and will be effective until December 31, 2025. Companies buying vehicles manufactured domestically will be able to deduct expenses of 2 times the actual price of the vehicles, without a price ceiling being set. For the purchases of imported vehicles, the deduction will be equal to 1.5 time the actual price of the vehicles.
The large electric vehicles eligible for the incentives include electric trucks for commercial uses such as container trucks, liquid trucks, hazardous substance trucks, special trucks, tow trucks, as well electric buses, both air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned vehicles.
The meeting also approved a plan to promote the manufacturing in Thailand of battery cells for EV and energy storage systems (ESS) by providing financial support via the country’s Competitiveness Enhancement Fund, and possibly other benefits available under the Competitiveness Enhancement Act, to companies meeting the criteria.
