Ensure Chinese carmakers don’t take EU FTA route to India: BMW

NEW DELHI: BMW has cautioned that Chinese carmakers may use the India-EU trade agreement to enter the domestic market and has asked govt to ensure checks to avoid possible misuse while suggesting that cars only above a certain threshold be allowed to take advantage of the proposed deal.

“The apprehension is if small cars start coming into India, then they will spoil existing investment. The cost of production is very high in other countries. I don’t think we will be able to ever match the pricing in India. But if there is still any apprehension, they can always put a cap of, let’s say, cars above 20,00030,000 euros (over Rs 21 lakh). That is possible, which can help the luxury car buyer without really impacting small buyers. The second important thing is to make sure that the Chinese do not circumvent this… it’s very important that this part is taken care of,” BMW Group India president and CEO Hardeep Singh Brar told TOI.

Indian carmakers are wary of Chinese electric vehicle players entering India through the “backdoor” and have petitioned govt to have checks under the trade pact, which is in the final stages of negotiation. They have suggested a high price threshold, limited quotas and high level of value addition be prescribed under the trade pact with the European Union.

Brar said BMW will be pushing EVs and has lined up 10 new products this year, of which six will be new models and four would be upgrades in the existing portfolio. Three of the new products planned will be EVs.

The company plans to offer EVs at near price parity with internal combustion models and focus on long-wheelbase cars. “A combination of electrification and a long wheelbase is what really helped us,” he said.

Underlining the need for strengthening the EV and luxury market, Brar said charging infrastructure was the most critical gap and suggested the PPP route to install and maintain chargers.