Elon Musk, the Chief Executive of Tesla, has long tried to crack on the Indian car market and has confronted trade barriers that have made so difficult.
When Mr. Musk now holds a position of power in the US government as an assistant for President Trump, there are signs that Tesla is preparing to sell electric cars in India.
Tesla formed a local subsidiary in 2021 and established a relationship with Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, ten years ago. The company has neither a production facility nor a joint sales operation and has only sold a small number of cars in India.
But President Trump has made the sale of American cars in India an American priority and pushes Mr. Modi to release India's trade barriers in the import of cars.
Mr. Musk met Mr. Modi this month when the Prime Minister was in Washington for bilateral meetings with Mr. Trump.
Three business people who are familiar with the real estate markets in New Delhi and Mumbai, of whom two spoke about the condition of anonymity, said Tesla pursued lease contracts for large commercial spaces in both cities.
Tesla has placed listings for different jobs in Mumbai, some with descriptions that also work in New Delhi. The schedule of functions, including service managers, operational analysts and sellers, suggests that the company is planning to open showrooms. One of the new employees in India, said the Tesla site, “walk-in guests will open the conversation immediately, personally and with the aim of feeling welcome.”
News that Tesla prospected for commercial real estate was previously reported by Reuters.
Mr. Modi's meeting with Mr. Musk came on February 13, when the Indian leader was in Washington to visit President Trump. “I assume he wants to do business in India,” Mr. Trump said about the Musk-Modi meeting. India's official statement was that “they have discussed the strengthening of cooperation between Indian and American entities in innovation, space exploration, artificial intelligence and sustainable development.”
The total rate of India on fully assembled electric vehicles is 110 percent. Mr. Musk took knowledge of India's trade policy when this week together with Mr Trump on Fox News was interviewed: “The rates are, like, 100 percent import obligation.”
The Economic Times, an Indian newspaper, reported on Thursday that the rate could be reduced to 15 percent due to a coming change to government policy, for every company that connects $ 500 million to production in India. But the lower rate would only apply to 8,000 units per year; More would be taxed at the higher rate.
Even if the import barriers were to disappear, Tesla would have a hard time breaking in India. Local manufacturers such as Mahindra and Tata produce popular electric cars that sell for just under $ 15,000. Teslas starts at around $ 40,000. And there is no supercharger network in India. Those charging stations have helped stimulate the demand for Teslas on American highways.
Vinkesh Gulati, an old manager in the Indian car industry, said that Tesla was 'looking for talent and showrooms in India'. He said he believed that the company wanted to show the Indian government that it was interested in entering the market. However, he said that Tesla would probably insist on increasing or eliminating the planned limit of 8,000 a year for the import of Lage Tariff.
Mr. Musk has shown interest in India for years. “I am a fan of Modi,” he said at a press conference in 2023. At the beginning of last year, he said on X that India earned a permanent seat at the UN Security Council. Two months later, Mr Modi's government said that it would lower the rates for exporters such as Tesla – provided they are building factories in India – and Mr. Musk said he would visit the Lord Modi in New Delhi. But the journey was canceled and no factory was built.
Tesla buys a relatively small amount of parts for its vehicles from Indian suppliers. According to the government data, the company bought $ 1 billion from India.
Starlink from Mr. Musk's Internet Satellite Service, who also hopes for favorable policy changes in India, seems a much greater chance of coordination between the richest tycoon in the world and the most populated nation.
