Automobiles: Elon Musk’s EV maker Tesla enters India; first showroom in Mumbai
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Weeks after India gave the go-ahead to Elon Musk’s Starlink, the high-speed, satellite-based Internet services provider, to operate, his electric vehicle-maker company, Tesla, entered the country with an ‘experience centre’ and the first showroom in Mumbai on Tuesday.
A 4,000-square-foot space in Mumbai’s financial district of Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) opened its doors on Tuesday with two Model Ys on display, the media reported.
A second showroom is likely to open in New Delhi by the end of July. Tesla is currently hiring and securing warehousing space in the national capital.
After much delay, Tesla Inc opened its first India showroom, showcasing Model Y cars, priced at nearly Rs. 60 lakh, as this EV maker looks to tap new markets and offset slowing sales where it’s already well established.
The rear-wheel drive vehicle has a starting price of about Rs. 60 lakh while the longer-range variant is priced Rs. 68 lakh, Tesla’s website showed.
That’s almost a third more than the vehicle’s starting price in the US without a federal tax credit — largely because of India’s 70 percent to 110 percent tariffs on imported cars that Musk has long criticised.
Despite ongoing heavy rains in India’s financial capital, the Tesla showroom attracted many enthusiasts who tried to get a glimpse of the cars at ‘experience centre.’
Isabel Fan, Tesla’s Director for South East Asia, was among the company officials at the inauguration.
The long-anticipated India entry by Tesla comes amid mounting challenges in China and the US, its two core markets. The company’s sales fell last quarter and it’s anxious to avoid a second year of declines after a dismal 2024.
The American EV maker has been ceding ground globally to Chinese rival BYD Co. India represents an opportunity to grow in a market that’s relatively untapped by global brands, due to a gamut of protectionist barriers, the reports said.
But with no plans to set up a manufacturing plant in the world’s third-largest automobile market, Tesla’s entry into India is less about racking up immediate sales volume gains and more about gaging demand for its EVs and building up the brand’s image.
Customers in India can begin placing orders later this month and the first deliveries are likely in August, Bloomberg News reported last week.
While the Model Y is the world’s top-selling electric car, few Indians will be able to afford one. The country’s EV penetration remains under 5 per cent, and luxury cars make up just 1 percent of total vehicle sales.
Tesla will compete mostly with German luxury carmakers such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz Group AG, not mass-market budget-car players like Tata Motors Ltd, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, and MG Motors India.
Musk’s company has flirted with the idea of establishing a local manufacturing base — something the Indian government has courted and that could sidestep heavy import tariffs — but so far Tesla hasn’t committed to doing so.
India is currently negotiating a trade deal with the US, including a potential reduction in tariffs on automobiles — something Musk has been seeking for years.
