BERLIN: The German government plans to boost demand for electric cars by exempting them from vehicle tax.
Under the plan, individuals, who buy an EV by 2020, would not have to pay vehicle tax for 10 years, the paper said. Support could also include a research programme which would boost the development of batteries.
The parliamentary groups of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives and her Social Democrat partners have agreed on the main points and could agree on the full package on Thursday, ending months of haggling, sources said.
Purchase incentives are also possible but they would be decided later at a meeting of Merkel, SPD Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel and auto chiefs.
German auto executives have long pushed the government to introduce incentives to lift demand for EVs. Pressure has increased since Volkswagen Group’s diesel-emissions scandal broke last year.
A passion for fast, powerful cars among German drivers has fed demand for gasoline and diesel engines, and Germany lags countries such as Norway and the Netherlands in subsidies and providing charging points for EVs.
The government aims to increase the number of EVs on German roads to a million by 2020 from just over 30,000 sold so far.
