Original title: India is ready forTeslaProvide incentives to ensure that production costs are kept to a minimum
Source: TechWeb
On March 3, according to foreign media reports, India's Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari (Nitin Gadkari) said that if Tesla promises to produce electric vehicles in this South Asian country, India is prepared to provide some incentives to ensure that the company's production costs are the lowest in the world, or even lower than China's.
According to reports, Tesla may enter the Indian market as early as mid-2021. The plan is to export and sell its Model 3 electric sedan to India first. In an interview, Gadkari said, “Instead of assembling (cars) in India, they would rather manufacture the entire product in India by hiring local suppliers. That way we can make more concessions.” But he didn't reveal the details of the incentives, only saying that when Tesla starts producing cars in India, the government will ensure that Tesla's production costs are the lowest in the world and even compared to China.
Tesla did not immediately respond to the matter. Currently, global automakers are racing to launch electric vehicle production plans. India, on the other hand, is facing a huge challenge in winning production promises from Tesla.
On the one hand, India's electric vehicle market is far less than China's. Of the 2.4 million cars sold in India last year, only 5,000 were electric cars. The high cost of electric vehicles discouraged buyers because there was very little charging infrastructure. In contrast, China sold 20 million cars in 2020, including 1.25 million new energy vehicles. The Chinese market accounted for more than one-third of Tesla's global sales. India, on the other hand, does not have a comprehensive electric vehicle policy like China's.
However, Gadkari is still quite optimistic. He said that India is not only a big market, but can also become an export center. In particular, currently about 80% of lithium-ion battery components are produced locally, which is a win-win situation for Tesla. He also hopes to partner with Tesla to build a hyperspeed loop between Delhi and Mumbai.
According to reports, India is drawing up a production incentive plan with automobile and component manufacturers and battery manufacturing departments, but the details have not yet been finalized. Although India has a large population, whether the electric vehicle market can expand still depends on improving infrastructure.