Elon Musk-led Tesla’s most affordable car likely to be launched in India: Report

Tesla is reportedly aiming to launch its most affordable model in India. The model, to be priced at 25,000 Euros, will be launched in Germany first, and subsequently in India. Tesla and billionaire Elon Musk are yet to make an official announcement. 

According to a report in Moneycontrol, the Tesla model that is expected to be launched in India is the Model Y Crossover. Model Y, based on the Model 3 sedan platform, is a midsize crossover SUV being built by the company since 2020. This model also offers third-row optional seats for a seven-passenger seating capacity. 

Meanwhile, India is on the verge of finalising a deal with Tesla that would allow the American automaker to import its vehicles into the country starting next year. The company would also establish a manufacturing plant within 2 years, Bloomberg had reported. 

The official announcement on this is expected at the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit in January. 

Tesla is planning to invest $2 billion initially in the new plant in India and also plans to buy auto parts from India worth up to $15 billion. Tesla could also make some batteries in India to cut costs. 

Nevertheless, these plans are not final and are likely to undergo certain changes. 

Union Minister Piyush Goyal, during his US trip last week, visited the Tesla factory in Fremont, where he was scheduled to meet Elon Musk but since the latter was unwell, the meeting could not take place. “Visited Tesla’s state of the art manufacturing facility at Fremont, California. Extremely delighted to see talented Indian engineers & finance professionals working at Senior positions and contributing to Tesla’s remarkable journey to transform mobility. Also proud to see the growing importance of Auto component suppliers from India in the Tesla EV supply chain. It is on its way to double its components imports from India. Missed Mr Elon Musk’s magnetic presence and I wish him a speedy recovery,” said the minister.

Musk responded to the minister’s post and said that he looked forward to meeting Goyal at a future date.

Also read: Tesla to set up factory in India within 2 yrs; start EV imports next year

Also read: 'India is poised to become a big market, big producer of EVs': Piyush Goyal on Tesla’s entry in India