Tesla Motors talks to govt to bring electric cars to India via single-brand retail route
Tesla Motors, electric car maker founded by Elon Musk, has commenced talks with the government to make its India foray through the single-brand retail route. If Tesla opts for this window, it will have to comply with several riders including mandatory local sourcing of up to 30 per cent of the value of goods sold in India. Tesla has written to the government evincing interest in bringing its electric cars to the Indian market through the single-brand retail window. A few months ago, Musk had tweeted about the high import duty and sourcing requirements. At the time Musk had mentioned that he was in talks with the Indian government requesting temporary relief in import penalties for Tesla "until a local factory is built". Tesla had initially planned its India foray by summer of 2017. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited the Tesla headquarters in the USA in 2015.
Tesla may not be considering the import route as it would entail more than 100 per cent duty, which does not make sense for it. However, with even the Prime Minister interested in Tesla electric cars and technology, the government will reply to Tesla in coming weeks regarding the single-brand retail option. Meanwhile, there is no clarity on how Tesla plans to provide after-sales service in India and develop infrastructure to charge the vehicles if it takes this route. The development comes weeks after union minister of road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari 'bulldozed' the SIAM annual convention, reiterating the government's push for an electric mobility future.
Source: Times of India