Voltas, Daikin and Orient are among the 38 bidders of the PLI white goods programme

As many as 38 companies, including Voltas, Daikin and Orient, have applied for production-linked incentive (PLI) for white goods – air conditioners (ACs) and LEDs – after the government reopened the application period for the scheme for the third time.

According to Sanjiv, joint secretary of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), the latest round will attract investments worth Rs 4,121 crore.

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During the third round of applications, the government will spend a whopping Rs 1,678 crore in incentives for the scheme, which will be valid till the financial year 2029-29. Of the applicants, 20 are for AC components and 18 for LED lighting.

However, an applicant approved in the proposed third round will be eligible for PLI for a maximum of three years only in case of new applicants.

According to Sanjiv, since the rollout of the scheme three years ago, domestic value addition has increased from 25 percent to about 50 percent now. Going forward, the government expects value addition to increase to around 80 percent.

By FY29, 38 companies are expected to achieve production of around Rs 55,877 crore for AC components and LED lighting, while generating direct employment for 47,851 people.

The 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 paid Rs 80 crore to the beneficiary companies.

The scheme, which was rolled out three years ago, will be implemented over a period of seven years ending in the financial year 2028-2029. The outlay of the scheme is Rs 6,238 crore. The first round of applications was invited in 2021, followed a year later by the second round because not all of the allocated fund had been used.

The PLI program for white goods is designed to create a complete component ecosystem for ACs and LED lighting industry in the country and make India an integral part of global supply chains.

“The application window for the PLI scheme for white goods has been reopened based on the industry’s willingness to invest more under the scheme, which is a result of the growing market and the confidence generated by the production of key components of ACs and LED lighting in India under the PLIWG scheme,” an official statement said.

First publication: October 15, 2024 | 12:46 pm IST