The upcoming election removes from the chapter the chance to cancel the “last minute” of the purchase tax on electric vehicles planned for January 2023. This is what a source in the Treasury estimates. According to the source, in order to cancel the tax increase, which was already approved in 2019, a signature of Q is required.R. Finance on a special order. However, due to the dissolution of the Knesset, such a move requires the approval of the Attorney General due to the fear of an “election economy” and the chances that the Adviser will approve the move until after the new government is called are slim.
In recent months, heavy pressure has been put on the Treasury to postpone the planned purchase tax increase from 10% to 20%, which is scheduled to take place in January 2023 as part of the multi-year outline approved in 2019. Among other things, the Ministry of Finance received an inquiry on the matter from the Ministry of the Environment, which claims that there is no justification for raising the tax at such an early stage of the penetration of the electric vehicle, and from various lobby bodies in the economy. The pressure was also exerted last week by a number of factors at the 7th Energy and Economics Conference.
Among other things, Eitan Perens, CEO of the Association of Green Energy Companies for Israel, said at the conference that “it is not possible for the Treasury to ignore global trends and be busy blocking the electric vehicle. “It is inconceivable that someone who buys an electric vehicle is an ‘enemy of the public’ because he does not pay excise tax on gasoline and receives purchase tax benefits from the state.”
Sources in the Ministry of Finance estimate that the chances of canceling the tax increase on electric vehicles are also low due to the high and unexpected budgetary cost of the move to reduce the excise tax on shekel fuel per liter for three months, which the Minister of Finance announced this week.
According to the Treasury’s estimates, each reduction of 10 agorot in excise duty on fuel reduces the state’s tax revenue by about NIS 13 million per month. In other words, the three-month move cost the state about NIS 390 million.
It should be noted that thousands of electric vehicle orders registered with importers in recent months will only be delivered next year due to the global shortage of electric vehicle. Thus even customers who ordered the vehicles this year will pay the tax retroactively unless the importers agree to “absorb” the tax increase.
Siphia Vision has signed an agreement to supply driver monitoring systems to the Chinese Cherry
The Israeli auto-tech company “Sifia Vision”, which develops, manufactures and markets systems for monitoring the vehicle’s interior and the driver using artificial intelligence, announced this week that it has won a tender from the car manufacturer Cherry as part of which it will implement Driver Sense software. ‘Re, intended for the European market and Latin America.
According to the company’s announcement, production is expected to start in early 2023. According to the company, “The Chinese car market is operating at a higher rate than we know from European manufacturers. “Platform, which shortens the testing and implementation process … Sifia is a leading supplier of driver monitoring technologies to the Chinese market.” It should be noted that so far Cherry has not unveiled any electrical model that has undergone all the full European standardization processes (WVTA). Such a standard is also a condition for importing vehicles into Israel.
AutoTech UVEYE has signed a strategic agreement with GM
The Israeli auto-tech company UVEYE, which develops artificial intelligence-based automated systems for rapid testing of vehicle integrity, has announced the entry into a strategic partnership agreement with General Motors, while receiving investment from GM’s venture capital arm.
The company, established in 2016, makes it possible to inspect the vehicle without disassembling it and identify, among other things, the condition of the bottom of the vehicle, chassis and tin accidents, the type and condition of the tires, leaks and more. The company has already signed cooperation agreements with several car manufacturers around the world and under the agreement with GM, the company’s systems will be integrated into GM’s dealer system in the United States, which includes more than 4000 dealers, and help identify problems and quickly determine the condition and value of used vehicles.
In addition, the two companies will examine the integration of technology in garage services and more. The company says that the system it is developing will be of critical importance in the future for the electric vehicle market due to its ability to detect defects and damage to the batteries, which are at the bottom of the vehicle and their cost is an essential component of the total cost of vehicles. The company’s technology is expected to be assimilated in Israel in the foreseeable future, most likely in the service and trade-in system of large car importers.