As many as 38 companies, including Voltas, Daikin, Orient, have applied for production-linked incentive (PLI) for white goods—air conditioners (ACs) and LEDs—after the government reopened the application window for the scheme for the third time.
According to Sanjiv, joint secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) the latest round will attract investment worth Rs 4121 crore.
During the third round of application, the government will spend as much as Rs 1,678 crore worth incentives towards the scheme–which will be valid till the financial year 2029-29. Among the applicants, 20 are for AC components and 18 for LED lights.
However, an applicant approved in the proposed third round would be eligible for PLI for a maximum three years only in the case of new applicants.
According to Sanjiv, since the roll out of the scheme three years ago, the domestic value addition has increased from 25 per cent to about 50 per cent now. Going ahead, the government expects the value addition would increase to about 80 per cent.
By FY29, 38 companies are expected to achieve production of about Rs 55,877 crore for AC components and LED lights, while generating direct employment for 47,851 people.
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Investment footprint under the PLI for white goods scheme has increased from 16 to 18 states/UTs including Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir. In 2022-23, the government disbursed Rs 80 crore to the beneficiary firms.
The scheme that was rolled out three years ago, is being implemented over a seven-year period, ending in the financial year 2028-29. The outlay of the scheme is Rs 6,238 crore. The first round of application was invited in 2021, followed by the second round a year later as the entire allocated fund was not utilised.
The PLI Scheme for white goods has been designed to create a complete component ecosystem for ACs and LED lights Industry in the country and make India an integral part of the global supply chains.
“The application window for the PLI Scheme for White Goods was reopened based on the appetite of the Industry to invest more under the scheme, which is an outcome of the growing market and confidence generated due to manufacturing of key components of ACs and LED Lights in India under the PLIWG Scheme,” an official statement said.