Elon Musk's electric vehicle company Tesla has finally agreed on a deal to set up its first Indian showroom in the glitzy Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) of Mumbai, according to a report in the Times of India.
Tesla's 4,000 sq ft showroom would be at ground level of an office tower complex in BKC. Tesla is reportedly shelling out one of the highest commercial space rents in the region, ₹900 a square foot, or approximately ₹35 lakh a month.
The firm has taken a five-year lease on this space and is also planning to open a second showroom in Aerocity, Delhi.
This lease agreement comes on the heels of a meeting between Elon Musk and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the latter's recent visit to the United States. Tesla subsequently listed job openings for 13 jobs in India. Prime Minister Modi had mentioned that in their discussion, they discussed many issues such as Musk's interest in space, mobility, technology, and innovation. He also pointed to India's continued reforms and the aim of having "Minimum Government, Maximum Governance."
Tesla's Foray into the Indian Market
Earlier reports by CNBC-TV18 had stated that Tesla intends to first import cars from its Berlin plant and sell them in India. The company is said to be eyeing a price tag of less than $25,000 for its electric cars in the Indian market.
For perspective, Tesla's lowest-priced vehicle in the US, the Model 3, begins at around $35,000 (roughly ₹30.4 lakh). Musk has not yet pledged to produce vehicles in India, but Tesla is already importing more than a billion dollars' worth of components from the country, and that amount is set to increase in the near term.
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