As the Pakistani automobile sector is on a constant upward streak and the government is supporting its development in Pakistan, there is yet another good news out of the market.
On 14th June, the Pakistani embassy in the Czech Republic hosted a delegation of Skoda Motors, to discuss the interest of the automobile company in Pakistan.
The embassy went to Twitter to share details about the meeting where the ambassador of Pakistan to the Czech Republic informed the delegation about the government’s policies and the opportunities for investment in the sector, especially for the Greenfield investment in the Hybrid/Electric vehicle market of Pakistan.
A Skoda Motors del.led by Christian Seelen, Head Global Reg met with @MuhammadKJamali. Amb apprised the delegation abt. investment opportunities 4 GreenField specially hybrid/electric vehicles in🇵🇰 . @ForeignOfficePk @FMPublicDiploPK @ed_mzvcr @mzvcr @skodaautonews @SMQureshiPTI pic.twitter.com/Qc0WTGctdr
— Pakistan Embassy Czech Republic (@PakinCzechRep) June 14, 2021
Other than Ambassador Muhammad Khalid Jamali, Head of Czech Pak Business Chambers Hassan Aslam, Head of Global Regions for Skoda Motors Christian Seelen, Head of Sales Asia Petr Janeba, and Head of New Markets Ondrej Cerny were present in the meeting that took place in Pakistan’s Prague embassy.
Read More: Aliya Malik shares a snapshot of Pakistan’s upcoming Auto Policy 2021-26
According to the reports, the Czech automobile manufacturer’s representatives acknowledged the recent growth of the automotive industry in Pakistan and expressed interest in exploring expanding to the Pakistani market, especially following the much talked about Auto Policy 2021-26 which will come to implementation from July onwards.
The Pakistani government has time and again said that the policy would be incentivizing EVs and alternative fuel section of automobiles, along with supporting the small car sector of Pakistan.
It is worth mentioning here that the recent budget has brought significant support to the auto sector, with the government removing Federal Excise Duty (FED) on locally assembled cars under 850cc. It was 2.5% earlier.
While speaking at National Assembly Pakistan’s Finance Minister Shaukat Tareen said that sales tax on these cars also has been reduced to 12.5% from 17%, meaning the reduction of 4.5%.
The minister further mentioned that the government wants to support electric vehicles in Pakistan. “That is why we are offering a lot of tax relaxations to them,” Tarin said.
The three main goals of the to-be-launched policy are reducing the car prices so the majority of the country can afford them, increase the local assembly and production of the cars and enhance the export of cars.
Read More: Pakistan entering the era of EVs with the upcoming auto policy
However, it remains to be seen what market attracts the Czech car company, as the company’s portfolio is diverse, including sedans, hatchbacks, station wagons, and SUVs.
Skoda in 1991 became a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group, which is already constructing its plant in Pakistan to introduce its commercial vehicles in Pakistan. Other than VW, other European brands are also eyeing the market, which has been quite good to the new Korean and Chinese auto manufacturers.