BANGKOK (CNA) – Thailand has expanded incentives to boost the use of electric vehicles (EVs), the investment promotion agency said yesterday, as the country looks to preserve its status as a major Southeast Asian auto production hub.
Smaller charging stations will now be eligible for three-year tax benefits, an extra incentive on top of a five-year corporate income tax exemption available to investments in charging stations with at least 40 chargers, head of the Board of Investment (BOI) Duangjai Asawachintachit, told a news conference.
A condition barring investors from receiving additional benefits from other agencies, and a requirement for ISO certification have also been removed, she said.
The revised measures are “to ensure that our incentives stay relevant in a fast-changing business environment”, she said.
Thailand is encouraging consumers to shift to EVs, with a goal of ensuring 30 per cent of its total auto production output is EVs by 2030.
In the January-March period, overall foreign and Thai investment applications, including for the auto industry, were worth TBH110.7 billion (USD3.3 billion), down six per cent from a year earlier due to global geopolitical and economic challenges, Duangjai said.
However, foreign investment pledges alone rose 29 per cent to TBH77.3 billion in the January-March period, with Japan and China as the top investors, she said.
Among targetted industries, the auto sector topped the list with an investment value of TBH41.6 billion, followed by agriculture and food processing with TBH12 billion, and electronics with TBH10.3 billion.
