Ministry of Industry Reveals Electric Car Purchases Increase 226 Percent

Electric car illustration (Photo: dock.unsplash)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Industry records that sales of electric cars until July 2023 have reached 5,471 units or an increase of 226 percent in two months.

"I think the increase is quite high. July 5,471, (up) 226 percent," said Director General of Metal, Machinery, Transportation Equipment and Electronics Industry, Ministry of Industry, Taufiek Bawazier, quoted Thursday, October 12.

This amount is an accumulation of sales since the government provided a 10 percent VAT exemption incentive starting April 2023.

"April-July. That's the periodization given to us around March. Yes, after March it is calculated that the increase is two months that much," added Taufiek.

He further added that the average electric vehicle owner is not a first buyer but rather people who previously owned a four-wheeled vehicle using fossil fuels and wanted to try it.

"Usually, the average person who buys an electric car is not the first person, wants to try it, buys it. Not the first buyer. There are first buyers who want it, but on average the first buyer has a car at home. So that's roughly the picture for "EV because people want to try it," explained Taufiek.

Meanwhile, for new electric motorbikes, based on VOI monitoring, the SISAPIRa website recorded that distribution of electric motorbikes was recorded at 836 units, 930 were verified and 4,593 others were still going through the registration process. The remaining quota recorded on Thursday 12 October was 193,641 units.

Just so you know, the Government provides tax incentives for electric cars as stated in Minister of Finance Regulation (PMK) Number 38 of 2023.

The incentive is in the form of value added tax (VAT) for cars and electric buses which reaches 10 percent this year.

Apart from that, the government has also set a subsidy in the form of a discount of IDR 7 million for the purchase of one electric motorbike which will be valid from March 20 2023.

These provisions are contained in the Minister of Industry Regulation Number 6 of 2023 concerning Guidelines for Providing Government Assistance for the Purchase of Two-Wheeled Battery-Based Electric Motorized Vehicles.