When it rains, it pours. Tesla is shifting into high gear as it is actively looking to set up its manufacturing plant in India. According to an Economic Times report, Maharashtra could become Tesla’s home base. The report also suggests that the Elon Musk-led EV company is in touch with Tata Motors for a potential partnership. Things are moving fast for the California-based company following Musk’s recent meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently at the White House.
Why does Maharashtra makes sense?
Maharashtra is the home for several automobile manufacturers, especially in the Chakan area (Pune), where companies like Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj, Tata Motors, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen have set up their bases. Logistics will also play an important part in this decision. Pune makes sense for Tesla as it opened its first office at Panchshil Business Park in 2023 signing a five-year lease according to reports.Â
Tesla hiring in India
To show how serious Tesla is in entering the domestic market, the company posted 13 job openings for its Indian office on its official LinkedIn page. The openings are based out of Mumbai and Delhi and Tesla is focused on setting customer service division and other back-end operations. Following are the job openings listed on its LinkedIn page — Service Technician, Service Manager, Inside Sales Advisor, Customer Support Supervisor, Customer Support Specialist, Order Operations Specialist, Service Advisor, Tesla Advisor, Parts Advisor, Delivery Operations Specialist, Business Operations Analyst and Store Manager.
Tesla zeros in on showroom locations
A lot has changed since 2021 when Tesla finalized a showroom in Mumbai to now zeroing on two locations. After the Indian government cutting customs tariffs on cars priced above $40,000 from 110 per cent to 70 per cent, Tesla has found the window of opportunity it was waiting for. The company has finanlised its showroom locations at Aerocity, New Delhi and Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) in Mumbai.
