The government of Maharashtra seems to have shown interest in inviting Tesla to the state after one of Aditya Thackeray’s tweets yesterday. Aditya stated that he participated in a video call with Tesla executives, along with Industries Minister Subhash Desai. He also mentioned his firm belief in electric mobility and sustainability, saying that the government is ready to build policies and make changes for sustainable development. Electric mobility, along with renewable energy, is the way forward, and he hopes that this ideology gets adopted quickly. Aditya Thackeray is the state tourism and environment minister of the state government.
Maharashtra Government Invites Tesla after 2021 India Entry Announcement
We are firmly committed to policy building and changes for sustainable development and I personally believe that electric mobility, supported by renewable energy is the way ahead. Let’s hope we can help this thought become mainstream soon
— Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) October 22, 2020
Tesla’s plans for India
Tesla CEO Elon Musk had stated earlier this month that Tesla will be going live with the order configurator for India, which will help customers from India order Tesla cars. Up until now, these prospective customers did not have the option of having cars delivered directly in the country. The initially high import duty on electric vehicles meant that these cars were not as affordable as they are in the USA or Europe. Now, with the advent of Tesla coming to India, electric vehicle enthusiasts will be able to make purchases easily.
The entry of Tesla in India will be coming at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is focusing on the promotion of electric vehicles. There has been an increasing interest in making electric mobility policies in various states recently. This combined with the decreasing import duty has helped India take small steps towards introducing electric cars in the country. But the entry of Tesla is sure to make waves in one of the largest world economies.
Prospective Factory in Bengaluru
The fact that the Maharashtra government is looking to make a deal with Tesla bodes well for not just the state, but also the country. It is, however, the second state in India to be in touch with Tesla, the first being Karnataka. The southern state has become an electric vehicle hub in India. A number of companies like Mahindra Electric have their headquarters in Bengaluru. Start-ups like Ather Energy, Sun Mobility and Ola Electric are based in the city as well. Karnataka was also the first state to have an electric vehicle policy, and other states followed suit later.
Bengaluru could soon become the venue for a Tesla research facility, according to the state officials. There are also plans to have a manufacturing plant in the state. After all, Musk has disclosed plans for Tesla to have a Gigafactory in Asia outside of China. This Gigafactory could very well happen in India. The government’s “Make In India” program will also support the construction of such a manufacturing plant. Now, with both Karnataka and Maharashtra showing interest in welcoming Tesla, an electric vehicle manufacturing hub in the country could be coming soon. Obviously, there is probably no better way to promote electric mobility than by allowing one of the biggest companies in the market to set up camp here. India is a huge market for the automobile industry, and Tesla’s entry is going to help the “CV-to-EV” transition a lot.
