Elon Musk may announce $2-3 billion investment during India visit: Report

Elon Musk will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday during his trip to India. (document)

New Delhi:

Tesla CEO Elon Musk will announce an investment of 2 to 3 billion in India when he visits New Delhi next week to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, two people familiar with the matter said. dollars, mainly used to build new factories.

Elon Musk will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday during a trip to India, where the billionaire is expected to unveil his plans to enter the world’s third-largest car market, where EV penetration is still in its infancy.

India’s electric vehicle market is small but growing and is dominated by local carmaker Tata Motors. In 2023, electric vehicles will account for only 2% of total car sales, but the government aims to have 30% of new cars be electric from 2030.

Elon Musk’s visit comes as Tesla battles slowing sales in its major markets of the United States and China and this week announced layoffs affecting 10% of its workforce.

Details of Elon Musk’s India trip are closely guarded secrets, with the CEO only publicly confirming on his social media platform X that he will meet Prime Minister Modi in India.

Elon Musk is likely to give investment figures for India but will not reveal details such as a timeline or the states in which factories will be built, two sources said.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Elon Musk has opposed India’s high import taxes on electric vehicles for years and lobbied for change. The Indian government announced a new electric vehicle policy in March that would reduce import taxes on certain models from as high as 100% to 15% if automakers invest at least $500 million and set up factories.

Tesla has started looking for showroom space in New Delhi and Mumbai, and its Berlin plant is producing right-hand-drive vehicles that it plans to start exporting to India later this year, Reuters reported.

Elon Musk may also attend an event organized by the Indian government in New Delhi with aerospace startups, two sources said.

Elon Musk owns the American space company SpaceX.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)