According to Reuters' Friday report, based on information from "two individuals familiar with the situation," two high-ranking Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) executives engaged in discussions with officials from India's investment promotion arm in New Delhi regarding the company's potential entry into the Indian market.
U.S. EV giant has previously expressed interest in building a factory in the country to produce low-cost electric vehicles priced at $24,000 for both the Indian market and export. A $24K price tag is around 25% less expensive than the company’s current entry model.
The two unnamed sources said that senior public policy and business development executive Rohan Patel, and a vice president for supply chain, Roshan Thomas are currently traveling New Delhi and meeting with officials from the Invest India agency.
According to one of the sources, numerous Indian states are eager to attract Tesla to establish its plant within their respective regions. However, the carmaker's current focus lies in engaging with the federal government in New Delhi to discuss its proposal. These discussions mark a significant turnaround for the company, given that its previous endeavors to lower import taxes on electric vehicles imported to India were halted by calls from government officials demanding a commitment to local car manufacturing.
Shares of TSLA are up 3.77% in mid-day trading on Friday.