ATHENS – Greece's New Democracy government is stepping up plans – and subsidies – to get people into electric and zero and low-emission vehicles as well as creating more charging stations around the country.

The incentives, after earlier announcements of enticements to get people to switch to electric cars that are proliferating – General Motors said it will phase out the internal combustion engine within a decade – were set out by the

Independent Authority for Public Revenue (IAPR) said Kathimerini.

The breaks are bigger for full electric cars than for hybrids which also have a gasoline-powered option and are less expensive and have been in circulation for years, although more electric version are being offered.

With some of the oldest – and newest – roads in the European Union and heavy smog at times in the cities from vehicles, the government's aim is for 30 percent of cars to be electric by 2030.

The incentives also extend to those who produce electric vehicles and all kinds of accessories, in order to kick-start a viable Greek industry in the sector, the paper said, which hasn't happened before.

The use of a company electric or low-emissions car by an employee, partner or shareholder in the enterprise is not considered income for the first 40,000 euros ($47,369.50) of the value of the vehicle’s pre-tax retail price.

The first phase of the plan foresees financial incentives for individuals and corporations to switch to green cars, noting that the government set aside 100 million euros ($113.22 million) to help purchases of electric cars over the next 18 months.

The subsidy will cover an estimated 25 percent of the purchase of 14,000 new electric cars, he said, to give buyers an incentive to buy them and help lower the cost overall.

Mitsotakis in June said tax breaks coming from the government would further make buying electric cars attractive to buyers as well as companies and that the vehicles will be exempt from the road tax for two years while the cost of recharging would be deductible in annual tax filings.

Among the incentives is 1,200 euros ($1421.09) in tax breaks for individuals and 2,480 euros ($2936.92) for company cars that, combined with the incentives of a bill passed last year for low-emission cars, the total savings for corporate electric vehicles will reach 3,500 euros ($4144.84) the paper also added.