Automakers seek extension of investment deadline under PLI scheme

livemint.com:

₹25,938-crore production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for the sector have sought clarification on whether the investment timeline has been extended in line with the one-year extension of the scheme, according to industry executives. To align with the extended incentive disbursement period, companies have urged the government to also extend the investment timeline of the scheme by a year. The five-year PLI scheme for advanced automotive technologies (PLI-AAT), as it is formally known, was extended by a year in late December, after none of the participating companies could avail of benefits in the first year of the scheme ending March 2023 (FY23).

The scheme now effectively runs from FY24 to FY28, with incentives to be disbursed following the conclusion of each financial year. Original scheme documents required the participating companies to make new investments every year between FY23 and FY27. The minimum investment to be made every year was also outlined in the policy as per the classification of the applicant company.

If companies fail to make the minimum required investment for a given year, they are disqualified from getting any benefits that year. When the new scheme timeline was announced in December, there was no mention of any changes to the investment timeline, industry executives said. Companies that missed adhering to the original investment timeline and did not make the required investments in FY23 are now concerned if they will get any incentives for the ongoing financial year.