After years of delaying Elon Musk’s brainchild Tesla is in talks with the Indian government for an investment proposal to set up a car factory in the subcontinent, with a yearly capacity of up to 500,000 electric vehicles. The starting price of the vehicles will be 2 million rupees ($24,400.66), the Times of India reported.
The company has been eyeing the Indian economy for years but the plans were hunky dory since it failed to get special incentives from the GOI for importing cars at a lower duty. In return the government has been adamantly demanding the Musk led firm to manufacture cars locally instead of importing from other countries —- like China. But then the company wanted to export its cars first to test the demand strength. Tesla plans to export cars from India to test demand in the Indo-Pacific region, according to government sources cited in a report by The Times of India.
The turn around in the company’s plans to invest in the country comes a month after Musk met with the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I am confident Tesla will be in India and we will do so as soon as humanly possible,” said Musk post the visit. In the meeting, Modi pushed the car maker to make a “significant investment” in the country.
In the latest efforts to enter the domestic market, the AI company held discussions in May with government officials about incentives being offered by the government, Reuters reported.
Using India as an export base allows Tesla to assess market potential and consumer preferences before expanding locally. It also takes advantage of India’s growing economy and focuses on a sustainable energy future including stationary battery packs and electric vehicles. After meeting Modi, Musk also hopes to bring SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service to the country.
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