Tesla CEO Elon Musk will meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi this month to discuss plans for a possible Tesla factory in the country.
According to reports this week, Mr. Musk and other executives are expected to meet with Mr. Modi on the week of April 22 and will announce further plans for the company in India.
The news comes as rumors circulate about a new Tesla Gigafactory in India. This year, the electric vehicle giant has begun producing right-hand driving cars at its Berlin Gigafactory for export to India.
On X this week, Mr. Musk seemed to confirm speculation about a Tesla expansion in India.
“India should have electric cars like every other country has electric cars,” he posted. “It’s a natural progression to provide Tesla electric vehicles in India.”
Mr. Musk’s staff has lobbied India for nearly a year to change its import tax to make it easier to get Tesla vehicles into the country. The efforts seem to have worked, with India last month changing its import tax from 100% to 15% if a company invests at least $500 million and builds a factory in the country.
The change could open the door to a necessary market for Tesla, which is struggling to boost sales as demand for EVs slows and competition grows. Tesla reported a significant drop in first-quarter sales, and China’s BYD replaced Tesla as the top-selling EV maker.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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