The government of Pakistan has announced tax incentives on e-vehicles to promote electric vehicles, but according to statistics, only more than 400 electric vehicles have been imported in the last one year.
According to Shaukat Qureshi, secretary general of the Pakistan Electric Vehicle and Parts Manufacturers and Traders Association, 463 electric vehicles have been imported into Pakistan since June 2020, including sedan cars and more than 50 kW.
According to Shaukat Qureshi, "Individuals have also ordered electric vehicles but most of the vehicles have been imported by investors."
It should be noted that the government of Pakistan has set a target of transferring 30% of vehicles to electric vehicles by 2030, while it has also announced to build more than 3,000 charging stations in the next four years.
Why are cars not available in the market in Pakistan despite tax relief on electric vehicles?
Qazi Rizwan, a resident of the federal capital Islamabad, has been waiting for his new electric car for seven months. Talking to Urdu News, he said that "announcements are made regarding the promotion of electric vehicles in Pakistan but it takes several months for the customs clearance of vehicles."
"We had booked the car from China seven months ago but the car has not yet arrived at the port. Some have stopped shipping due to Corona's problems, while the initial documentation for booking is still a long way off," he said.
Shaukat Qureshi, Secretary General, Pakistan Electric Vehicle and Parts Manufacturers and Traders Association, explains various reasons for the low availability of electric vehicles in Pakistan.
He said that the most sought after vehicles in Pakistan are those which fall in the category of 660 cc to 1000 cc and so far small electric cars have not been introduced in Pakistan.
"In the next few months, the first consignment of 100 small electric vehicles is arriving in Pakistan, after which 100 vehicles will come to Pakistan every month, consisting of 6.5 KV and 12.5 KV power," he said.
Shaukat Qureshi further said that the cost of large electric vehicles is very high and besides high customs duty and tax rates, lack of charging stations is also a major problem.
He said that small electric vehicles would be able to be plug-and-play at home while some aspirants for large vehicles have imported charging stations in their homes which are quite expensive.
According to Shaukat Qureshi, "Tax on import of electric vehicles is still 10% while tax exemption has been given on manufacturing in Pakistan but it will take time to start manufacturing of electric vehicles in Pakistan."
According to him, at present agreements have been signed with various Chinese companies and it is hoped that soon a small electric vehicle between Rs 20 to 25 lakh will be available in Pakistan with a range of 250 to 280 km.
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