The US carmaker has expressed an interest in building a
factory in India that would produce a low-cost electric vehicle (EV) priced at
$24,000, around 25 percent cheaper than Tesla's current entry model, for both
the Indian market and export.
The US-based executives — senior public policy and business
development executive Rohan Patel, and a vice president for supply chain,
Roshan Thomas — are currently in New Delhi and met officials from the Invest
India agency, the two sources said, declining to be identified as the
discussions were private.
Invest India CEO Nivruti Rai, a former Intel executive, held
talks with the Tesla executives during a meeting on Thursday, they added.
Tesla and Invest India did not immediately respond to requests
for comment.
Most Tesla meetings with Indian officials have been kept
under wraps. Reuters reported this week that Tesla representatives will also
meet commerce minister Piyush Goyal, with discussions expected to centre on
setting up an EV supply chain and land allotment for a factory.
Many Indian states are keen to woo Tesla to set up its plant
in their region, but the carmaker is currently focussed on discussing its
proposal with the federal government in New Delhi, said one of the sources.
The discussions represent a sharp reversal for the company
after efforts last year to reduce import taxes on EVs shipped to India were
scuppered by calls from government officials to commit to making cars locally. ©
Reuters
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