EU set to delay 10% tariff on electric cars from UK, FT reports

Nov 12 (Reuters) - The European Union is set to delay a 10% tariff on electric cars from the UK, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Brussels is consulting the industry on proposals to postpone the 10% levy that would apply to most electric vehicles from January 1, the FT reported.

Reuters could not immediately verify the report. 

• The post-Brexit agreement between the EU and the UK says that to qualify for zero tariffs, at least 55% of the value of EVs needs to be from the European Union or Britain, with values of 65% for battery cells and modules and 70% for battery packs.

• Import tariffs of 10% apply for EVs falling short of those requirements, but the EU in late 2023 proposed a three-year delay to the tightened rules.

• After that delay the post-Brexit rules triggering a 10% tariff on 70% of battery electric and plug-in hybrid models traded with the EU were due to take effect from January 2027.

• Britain's main car lobby, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, warned in June that electric vehicle makers would have to pay £1.4 billion ($1.86 billion) in tariffs if there was no solution on local content requirements.

• Britain and the EU are each other's largest export market for EVs, with targets in both Brussels and London to phase out combustion engine models in the 2030s.

• The European Commission and the British Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comments sent outside of regular business hours.

($1 = 0.7543 pounds)

(Reporting by Harishankar Manoj in Bengaluru; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Tom Hogue)