Global EV automotive giant Tesla is on the verge of entering the Indian market and the same syndicated when the company recently launched its opening Drive in India. Amidst reports that Tesla could be arriving in India shortly at a relatively big capacity, the state governments have begun lobbying to secure the investment understanding with the global giant.
With an innovative Chandrababu and result-centric Nara Lokesh at the helm, Andhra Pradesh holds a significant chance of actually landing Tesla and related background work is happening already now.
According to national media reports, the AP government’s Economic Development Board (EDB) has made a consolidated pitch with its port connectivity and abundant land to attract the futuristic car company.
The talks had been initiated with Tesla by the new TDP alliance government in October 2024 itself, when IT minister Nara Lokesh had met the company’s chief financial officer Vaibhav Taneja during his US visit.
These efforts are aggravated now after the recent meeting between Elon Musk and Modi, which in turn surged up the hiring drive of Tesla. In view of this, the AP government has reportedly amplified the efforts to secure direct access with the company and orchestrate an onboarding program.
AP anyway has the rich legacy of onboarding Kia and creating a perfect environment for them to grow here. This can be used as a case study to woo Tesla now as the U.S.-based company is anyway a result-based operator. This is where Chandrababu and Lokesh can work their magic with their perseverance and determination.
Andhra Pradesh government is even ready to permit Tesla to import cars in the early phase before they start the manufacturing unit here and ready to allot huge land bank for the construction of factory. The port access will help them with the same. This could woo the EV giant significantly.
Also, this is not the first time that the state government has pitched to Tesla either. Back in 2017, Babu had signed a memorandum of understanding with Tesla and Musk had promised to extend technological expertise for establishment of two solar energy storage units of 4 MW capacity each in the state.
This prior connections and positive establishments could come in handy now, it could be argued.