Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment stated that a policy package to attract investment from global electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers is expected to be completed and released this November.

The ministry's Deputy for Infrastructure and Transportation Rachmat Kaimuddin stated here on Friday that the government is developing a scheme and offering fiscal incentives within a timeframe to invite investors from any country to invest in the country's EV industry.

"Hopefully, this month, the regulation can come out," Kaimuddin remarked at the forum group discussion titled "Mapping Indonesia's Decarbonization Towards Net-Zero."

Kaimuddin explained that the fiscal incentives encompass ease of import duties on vehicle imports. However, to avail this incentive, producers must commit to producing the same quantity as they import.

"For instance, the number of units they produce must be the same as the units they import until 2027. Hence, the ratio of production to (imported units) is one-to-one," he stated.

He explained that this scheme was successfully implemented in Thailand. Sales of EVs there also increased, from two percent in the previous year to eight percent.

By inviting more investors from EV-producing countries, people will have more choices to switch to environmentally friendly vehicles.

"Hence, once it was implemented (in Thailand), many choices of cars emerged. (In Indonesia) the choice is still limited, there are only two types, one is Rp200 million and the other is Rp700 million. It is not complete yet," he remarked.

Although he did not mention any specific brand, Kaimuddin said that almost all investors keen to build an EV ecosystem in Indonesia are waiting for the regulation.

Nonetheless, the government revealed that it is still negotiating with several EV manufacturers, such as BYD and Tesla.

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Translator: Ade J, Kenzu
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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