Suboptimal EV Transition Negatively Impacts Car Sales

Then, the increase in VAT (Value Added Tax) to 12 percent also has a negative impact on various industries, including automotive.

“This industry involves tens of thousands of workers. In fact, from upstream to downstream, it's definitely over 100,000 (people),” he said.

Therefore, he hopes for a correction in the VAT rate to ease the burden on various parties, especially consumers in the automotive sector.

“While electric vehicles still cannot catch up with the lost volume (of conventional cars), fossil-fueled vehicles must be given a lifeline,” he asserted.

Photo : KatadataOTO

Bebin emphasized that the series of challenges in the automotive sector currently affect not only four-wheeled vehicles but also two-wheeled ones.

Among the many things the government can do, correcting the VAT percentage is considered one of the keys to helping balance the EV transition while maintaining overall car sales.

For your information, the presence of electrified vehicles in Indonesia is starting to mushroom, especially brands from China. 

Several manufacturers choose to locally assemble their vehicle lines so that the prices offered can be competitive, such as the Wuling Air ev which is sold starting from Rp 190 million.

Photo : Special

However, the sales percentage of electric cars is still smaller compared to hybrid and conventional cars.

Concerns about infrastructure such as public electric vehicle charging stations (SPKLU) and the limited choice of affordable models are obstacles.