Tesla Sells 4,070 Electric Cars in S. Korea for 46% of Market Share in Q1

US electric carmaker Tesla sold 4,070 cars in South Korea in the first quarter due to generous state subsidies, accounting for 46 percent of 8,831 electric vehicles (EV) sold.

Tesla's sales were five times that of another popular EV model, GM Korea's Bolt, which sold 766 units.

However, Tesla's rapid ascent to becoming the third most sold imported auto brand in the country raised a howl among local players on why the state is excessively assisting foreign car makers with hefty price tags.

It was argued that while benefits from Korea's generous funding, it does not create local jobs or pay sufficient taxes.

However, Tesla Korea Ltd., expected to rake in annual sales of 1 trillion won just from its Model 3, could be taxed way higher in South Korea this year with the implementation of stricter auditing rules.

Close to one-fifth of the cost of the Model 3 sedan is subsidized, with the government of South Korea providing an 8 million won aid to Tesla Model 3 on top of the additional 4.5 million won handed out by local governments.

The Korean government has increased this year's state budget for EV subsidies to 800.2 billion won from last year's 540.3 billion won, representing a 48 percent push.

Around 84,150 EVs would benefit from South Korea's handouts in 2020, way higher than last year's 54,652 units.

Korea has been spurring the use of clean vehicles, aiming to have 430,000 EVs running on the country's roads by 2022.