Nissan vows to work with Centre on $770 million incentive dispute

Japanese auto major Nissan on Friday said it was committed to working with the Indian government to resolve a dispute over pending incentives to be given by the Tamil Nadu government.

The company has reportedly dragged the Indian government to international arbitration seeking over $770 million, which includes unpaid incentives, damages and interest costs among others.

When contacted a Nissan spokesperson did not deny the development.

"We are committed to working with the Government of India toward a resolution," the spokesperson said without specifying reasons for taking up such a step.

The spokesperson also did not comment on where the Japanese company has initiated the arbitration proceedings.

According to a media report, Nissan had sent legal notice to Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year on the issue.

"Nissan is proud to play a role in the Make in India effort and we have created over 40,000 jobs in India, directly and indirectly, and contributed to the economic growth of Tamil Nadu where we have invested around a billion dollars," the spokesperson said.

The Renault-Nissan alliance has set up a manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu with an investment of around Rs 6,100 crore so far. It has a total capacity to produce 4.8 lakh units per year.

The automotive group was offered various sops, including tax incentives by Tamil Nadu government to set up the plant in the state.

According to the report, the state government has not paid incentives due in 2015 to the company, which had also taken up the matter with the Centre for intervention.