Volvo Urges Govt To Boost Hybrid Incentives

The alternative mobility solution discussion seems to have shifted into higher gears as Volvo Auto India has now asked the government to offer added incentives for manufacturing hybrid and electric cars for the green cause. 

On the occasion of the Volvo V40 and V40 Cross Country facelift launch in Kochi, company’s managing director, Tom Von Bonsdorff, appealed for incentivising these cars in order to protect the environment. “Volvo has plans to launch more hybrid cars depending upon customer feedback,” he said.

“Our hybrid cars can travel 40 km before recharging. These cars are very much beneficial for cities like Delhi, which is highly polluted. In order to promote electric/hybrid cars, the central government should give incentives for customers,” he added.

Speaking about the company’s sales numbers this year, he informed that the Swedish carmaker has only sold 1,600 units in India. “Volvo has sold 1400 cars in 2015. Our target this year was 25 per cent more sales. But due to demonetisation we could only achieve 10 per cent more sales in 2016 than last year,” he said.

Having set foot in India in 2007, the carmaker has brought various products in India, ranging from the recently upgraded V40 hatchback to the XC90 SUV that was introduced in its hybrid avatar earlier this year. The manufacturer’s network in India spreads across 17 cities in the country with a handful of dealerships in the beckoning.