Could GE's EV Mega-Buy Be Bad For Consumers?
The Auto Prophet brings up a point that completely escaped our discussion of General Electric’s EV mega-buy:
By gobbling up EVs, GE certainly helps to jump-start the industry, but they also gobble up future tax credits that consumers would have gotten, unless GE opts to forego the EV tax credit. Which would be bad business.
Yup, GE’s huge EV buy will be good for GE… but it won’t be so great for the 25,000 Americans whose tax credit will slurped up in the process. After all, the credit expires after a manufacturer sells 200k qualifying vehicles, so every credit GE uses brings GM and Nissan that much closer to the day they have to ask consumers to pay full price for their pricey EVs. No wonder GM is already pushing for an extension of the credit past 200k units.
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Bad news for consumers? Well, if they were hoping to get a handout for buying a car, I suppose. Well, the parts of the handout that the dealer and manufacturer didn't already devour. Funny thing about a "credit" that lowers the end price; it makes it much easier to raise the starting price to get to about the same net cost to the consumer. Classic rent-seeking. Good news for taxpayers if the credits aren't extended, or ideally if the program was shut off tomorrow morning. EVs can't compete without a tax credit? Maybe there's a lesson there - and the lesson isn't "EVs need tax credits because EVs will save us all!"
The only good thing that GE does that is good, is good for GE only. Whether its medical equipment or lighting products, GEs business practices suck for everybody but GE shareholders. They epitomize all that is bad about Corporate America. Plenty of other companies make boatloads of money without resorting to the slimy practices that are the hallmark of General Electric.
GE sees a potentially huge market in electric motors, batteries, recharging stations and the like as electric vehicles become feasible, this is simply about generating future profits for GE.
Clearly the solution is to cancel the tax credits, that would be fair to the taxpayers.