Elon Musk says Tesla electric cars coming to India will be natural progression

Elon Musk says offering Tesla electric cars in India is a natural thing.

New Delhi:

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said India, like other countries, should have electric vehicles and that offering Tesla electric vehicles in the country would be a natural progression for his company.

Musk said at the X Spaces conference: “India is now the most populous country in the world by population. India should have electric cars just like other countries have electric cars. Offering Tesla electric cars in India is a natural process.” Nicolai Tangen, CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management.

The billionaire CEO said that in the future “all vehicles will be electric, it’s just a matter of time.”

Tesla has recently increased its efforts in the Indian market and is actively looking for suitable locations to establish state-of-the-art manufacturing plants.

The Maharashtra and Gujarat governments have offered lucrative land to Tesla Inc to set up an electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing plant, sources said, marking a major step forward for India’s electric vehicle sector.

Sources said the proposed factory is expected to invest between US$2 billion and US$3 billion and is designed to meet domestic and international market demand for Tesla’s electric vehicles.

The move comes in the wake of India’s new electric vehicle policy, which provides incentives for setting up manufacturing plants in the country. As a global electric vehicle manufacturer, Tesla plans to establish a strong manufacturing base in India.

The government’s electric vehicle plan, which aims to position India as a preferred manufacturing destination for electric vehicles equipped with cutting-edge technology, outlines several key objectives.

These include attracting investments from globally renowned EV manufacturers, promoting adoption of advanced EV technologies among Indian consumers, and supporting the country’s ‘Make in India’ initiative.

The policy requires a minimum investment threshold of Rs 4,150 crore ($500 million) and encourages manufacturers to achieve significant levels of domestic value addition (DVA), with the government stipulating that at least 100% of the investment used in manufacturing vehicles will be made in the third year of setting up a manufacturing unit. 25% of components should be sourced domestically. It is expected that the localization level will increase to 50% by the fifth year of operation.

For vehicles worth $35,000 or more, a 15% tariff will be imposed for five years if the manufacturer sets up production facilities in India within three years.

The total number of electric vehicles allowed to be imported under the policy will be limited based on investment. or a maximum value of Rs 6,484 crore, whichever is lower. According to the policy, those with investment exceeding US$800 million can import up to 40,000 electric vehicles, with no more than 8,000 vehicles per year. Unused import quotas can be carried forward.

As part of the investment plan, Tesla intends to send a team of experts to various parts of India to find suitable sites for the proposed manufacturing plant.

The Financial Times reported, citing Indian officials, that the government will formally invite applications for the electric vehicle tariff reduction program by the end of this month, under which eligible companies will be allowed to import up to 8,000 vehicles per year.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in June last year that he planned to visit India in 2024, adding that he was confident the electric carmaker would enter the country and would “as soon as possible” “this way.

He told reporters after meeting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New York, where Modi was on a historic four-day state visit to the United States.

Musk once said that Prime Minister Modi invited him to visit India.

“I want to thank Prime Minister Modi for his support and hopefully we will be able to announce something in the future,” Musk said.

In November 2023, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal visited Tesla’s manufacturing plant in Fremont, California and said that the US electric car maker was planning to import parts from India. Twice the parts.

Mr. Goyal stressed that he was proud to see the growing importance of Indian auto parts suppliers in Tesla’s electric vehicle supply chain.

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