Tata Motors is urging the Thai government to relax its “eco-car “ rules to take into account the current depressed market conditions.
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The Indian vehicle manufacturer is one of five global vehicle manufacturers to be planning small car production in Thailand to comply within the Thai government’s eco-car specifications, which include a fuel consumption limit of 20km/litre.
In order to qualify for the substantial tax incentives offered by the Thai government, manufacturers must achieve a minimum output of 100,000 units per year within five years of start-up – to be achieved through domestic sales and exports.
Tata Motors had originally proposed to start production in 2010, but it has yet to develop a suitable model for this market. The 624cc 2-cylinder Nano model has been ruled out as inappropriate for the local market. Therefore, the company would not be in a position to start production before 2011 at the earliest.
Local reports suggest that Tata Motors is now reviewing its entire eco-car plan, which was seen as very ambitious even before the current economic downturn began. It is now calling on the government to lower the minimum annual output requirements.
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By GlobalDataOther vehicle manufacturers are also understood to be reviewing their respective eco-car programmes, with a view of at least delaying operations until market conditions stabilize. Toyota, Mitsubishi, Honda and Suzuki are the other companies to have plans to produce eco-cars in Thailand.
Tony Pugliese
