MUMBAI: In less than six months after saying it would stop producing cars in the country Ford Motor Company had said that it was considering producing electric vehicles (EVs) in India for export and possibly for sale in the domestic market. 

The American auto major had applied for incentives under India's US $3.5 billion scheme for clean-fuel vehicles and its proposal has been approved by the government, along with other four-wheeler manufacturing companies including Tata Motors, Hyundai, Suzuki, Kia and Mahindra, Ford.

Ford India has two car-producing plants in the country and reportedly the company said that it was 'exploring the possibility of using one of the plants in India as an export base for EV manufacturing' in the near future.

This proposed endeavour by Ford marks a shift in strategy after it had said in September last year that it was taking a hit of about US $2 billion because it did not see a path to profitability in the country. Even after two decades of operation in India, it had less than 2 per cent of the Indian passenger vehicle market.

Ford has said that it was is increasingly targeting customers in what it said was a "global electric vehicle revolution" and has plans to invest US $30 billion in EVs and batteries through 2030.

The scheme 'Champion OEM Incentive Scheme' of the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for India's automotive sector is an important scheme of the Modi government to cut oil imports and reduce pollution by giving benefits of up to 18% of new investments made by companies to manufacture electric and hydrogen fuel-powered vehicles. 

This scheme is also extended to two-wheeler makers and top producers like Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp, and TVS Motor are also likely to get the nod for PLI under this scheme.