India now wants to upgrade US pact on critical minerals

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

critical minerals to the United States, upgrading the bilateral memorandum of understanding (MoU), commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal said on Saturday. “We suggested that critical mineral MoU be converted to a critical mineral partnership and become a starting point to become an FTA (free trade agreement),” Goyal told media persons. Earlier this month, the two sides inked an MoU to strengthen supply chains for critical minerals in electric vehicles (EVs) and other clean energy applications, including cobalt and lithium, during Goyal’s visit to the US.
Officials said that the conversion of the MoU into a partnership agreement would give it the status of an FTA that would enable India to benefit from the EV tax credit that the US gives under its Inflation Reduction Act. The tax credit depends on critical minerals’ origins, requiring that a percentage of materials in EV batteries come from the US or countries with which the US has an FTA.

The access to the US EV tax credit of up to $7,500 per vehicle would attract substantial foreign investment and make large-scale manufacturing of components in India commercially viable. The MoU between India and US falls short of a full critical minerals trade deal that would allow India to explore the $7,500 US EV tax credit.

Last year, Japan signed a deal with the US Trade Representative’s office, and it has allowed Japanese automakers to fully participate in the credit. Goyal also said that India is opening up investment offices in New York.

India, US to Restructure