The American automobile giant is looking closer at the situation in India and is all set to launch its first 4 models in the country which suit the roads and landscape of India. Our country’s ministry of road transport and highways confirmed the status. Tesla’s initial release could have been earlier, but was delayed due to the pandemic and India’s take on import duties and taxes
Tesla To Launch Soon
The Indian ministry page quoted; “The tests ensure the vehicle matches the requirements of the Indian market in terms of emission and safety and road worthiness,”. A Tesla fan club earlier tweeted about the development, saying the cars were probably Model 3 and Model Y variants.
BREAKING : Tesla has completed homologation & received approval for 4 of it's vehicle variants in India.
While we don't have any confirmation on names yet, these are probably Model 3 & Y variants.
Will post more once we have confirmation.#TeslaIndia?? #TCIN #Tesla pic.twitter.com/ozE5LV1u8Y
— Tesla Club India® (@TeslaClubIN) August 30, 2021
Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk last month tweeted that import duties in India are among the highest in the world and the nation treats clean energy vehicles the same as gasoline, which isn’t consistent with its climate goals.
Gaining a foothold in the Indian car market won’t be easy considering EVs account for only 1% of the nation’s annual car sales and Tesla’s automobiles are very expensive.Scant charging infrastructure and a lack of financing for companies wanting to develop electric cars are other reasons why India is behind in the electric shift.
As average Indian household incomes are low, the overall market is dominated by more affordable scooters and motorbikes. Most conventional models cost somewhere between ₹40,000 and more than ₹2 lakh. Electric versions, of which a dozen or so models are available, start at ₹1 lakh. So in order to gain profit in a huge margin Musk will have to surely find an alternative to penetrate the Indian import duties and taxes, at the same time reducing the prices so that it becomes affordable for a common man to buy.
