The Electric Vehicle Board has agreed to promote the use of commercial electric vehicles in Thailand, such as truck or buses, by making the purchase price tax deductible, according to Narit Therdsteerasukdi, secretary-general of the Board of Investment (BoI).

He said that this is intended to encourage the business sector to switch to the use of EVs to reduce carbon emissions, which will help achieve Thailand’s zero carbon emission goal whilepromoting domestic production of EVs.

Under the measure, which is valid until the end of next year, companies buying e-trucks or e-buses can claim up to twice the purchase price against tax, in case of locally-assembled vehicles, and 1.5 times the price for imported ones.

Narit said the promotion is an extension of that granted to buyers of electric cars, motorcycles and pickup trucks, adding that it will encourage business operators to replace their internal combustion-powered vehicles with as many as 10,000 electric trucks and buses by the end of next year.

The BoI also agreed to promote the production of battery cells for EVs and energy storage systems (ESS), to encourage battery cell manufacturers to set up their production bases in Thailand.

The use of EVs in Thailand has increased substantially, with more than 76,000 EVs being registered last year, a 6.5 foldincrease over the preceding year.

Last year, the BoI granted promotional privileges to 103 EV projects, with total investments of 77 billion baht, including 18 e-car, 9 e-motorcycle and 3 e-bus and truck projects, 39 battery cell projects, 39 ESS projects, 20 spare part projects and 14 recharging station projects.