The appearance of electric vehicles on the roads is becoming more common, and a new Tesla megafactory could boost those sightings across the world even more.
Around 500,000 Tesla cars could be produced annually in India should an investment proposal to the nation's government prove successful.
Times of India reported details of Tesla's intent on July 13, noting the information was provided by government sources. Tesla is hoping to use India as an "export base," which would allow it to send vehicles to countries in the Indo-Pacific region.
"Tesla has come to us with an ambitious plan, and we are confident that the movement will be possible this time around, especially as it involves both local manufacturing and exports," the source told TOI.
The report added that Tesla had intended to begin manufacturing in India last year, but those plans were shelved after a failure in negotiations between the manufacturer and the country's government.
Virta, a company that develops EV charging solutions, produced research that said EV sales in 2022 topped 10 million, adding that 14% of all new vehicles sold were powered by electricity. That put the overall number of electric vehicles on the roads worldwide in 2022 at 26 million.
This new deal between India and Tesla could increase that number and further improve access to emissions-free travel.
India already leads the world in the electric three-wheeler market, according to Virta, with 425,000 sold in 2022.
Should a deal progress, India could become one of the world leaders in the electric four-wheeler market, too.
"We are just trying to figure out the right timing. … I am confident that Tesla will be in India and will do so as humanly possible," Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in June, per TOI.
In a shareholder update on July 19, Tesla revealed that it produced a record number of vehicles during its second quarter, crediting its workers in Shanghai and Fremont, California, for the milestone.
Q2 Shareholder Update https://t.co/rd0ILdpzRL
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 19, 2023
—
Highlights
In Q2, we produced a record number of vehicles, thanks to ongoing ramps of our new factories & strong performance of Shanghai & Fremont.
Cybertruck equipment installation at Giga Texas is in progress, with deliveries…
It has also seen the production of the first Cybertruck at its Texas-based Gigafactory, with deliveries said to be "on track" to start this year.
First Cybertruck built at Giga Texas! 🤠 pic.twitter.com/ODRhHVsd0t
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 15, 2023
Join our free newsletter for cool news and actionable info that makes it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
