Tesla not interested in manufacturing electric cars in India: Kumaraswamy

Combination image of Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and the Tesla logo on a showroom
| Photo Credit: Special arrangement | Reuters

Global EV giant Tesla is not interested in manufacturing cars in India but keen on establishing showrooms in the country, Union Heavy Industries Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said on Monday (June 2, 2025).

U.S. President Donald Trump has said that if Tesla were to build a factory in India to circumvent that country’s tariffs, it would be “unfair” to the U.S.

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“Tesla… They are more (interested) only to start showrooms. They are not interested to (start) manufacturing in India,” Mr. Kumaraswamy told reporters here.

The Minister made the remarks at a press conference to announce the unveiling of guidelines for the Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Electric Cars in India.

“So far they (Tesla) have not shown interest. A Tesla representative only participated in the first round of stakeholder discussions for the Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Electric Cars in India. The company’s representative was not part of the second and third round of the stakeholder deliberations,” an official told PTI.

Tesla CEO billionaire Elon Musk had said in April 2024 that his visit to India had been delayed due to the company’s heavy obligations.

Mercedes Benz, Volkswagen-Skoda, Hyundai, Kia interested

Mr. Kumaraswamy added that global automobile makers such as Mercedes Benz, Skoda-Volkswagen, Hyundai and Kia had shown interest in manufacturing electric cars in India.

The said companies have expressed interest during the stakeholder discussions between the government and the industry regarding the ‘Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Electric Passenger Cars in India’, the detailed guidelines for which were unveiled by the minister.

While the scheme was notified on March 15 last year, its guidelines were issued on Monday.

Officials said the window to apply under the scheme will open in a couple of weeks, and it remains to be seen which companies would actually go ahead and apply.

Approved applicants would be required to make a minimum investment of ₹4,150 crore in line with the provisions of the scheme.