In the past couple of years, the Indian car market has managed to attract several global players. All thanks to our humongous population, many new carmakers have tasted instant success. With the constant rise in the popularity of EVs, Tesla has been planning to enter the Indian market as well. To facilitate its arrival, it seems like Tesla has started its groundwork as well.
Setting up charging infrastructure
Tesla is setting up their charging infrastructure for their cars. A recent photo on the internet which was uploaded by ‘Tesla Club India’ on Twitter, shows us a Tesla supercharger. We could possibly see a couple of those superchargers in near future as well.
These supercharger units are believed to be V2 150 kW stations, which get two plugs for charging, Type 2 and CCS2. While in use, only one of these two charging plugs can be operated. These high-power superchargers from Tesla can charge a Tesla vehicle from 5 to 80 percent in just 30 minutes. However, these superchargers are the previous generation ones from Tesla. In other developed markets like North America and Europe, where Tesla is already having a strong presence, the company is working on the transition to better V3 superchargers with 250 kW charging speeds. Though, the V2 150 kW charging stations of Tesla are faster than most of the fast chargers available in the country already.
Tesla’s plans
Tesla is looking forward to making India a very profitable market for them. We have already seen Tesla testing their Model 3 and Model Y in India. The American automaker has already set up a corporate office in Bangalore. Initially, Tesla cars would have arrived in India through a CBU route but that would translate into higher prices than what Tesla wants to sell in India. Elon Musk-led Tesla company tried to get an exemption on import duties of electric cars, However, the government did not budge on the matter.
Tesla’s arrival into the Indian market will spice up the EV space in India. Tesla being an international brand has already got the hype so it will be interesting to see how Musk prices his cars in India.
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Currently, The Indian Government is already working towards a greener future, by offering incentives to EV manufacturers. One of the moves, for instance, is the reduction of goods and services tax (GST) on electric vehicles from 12% to 5%. The government has not only incentivized local production of electric vehicles but has also introduced tax benefits for people who buy electric cars. Under the scheme, buyers are eligible for an upfront reduction in price and an income tax deduction of ₹1.5 lakh on interest paid towards loans taken for the purchase of electric vehicles. However, there is no such incentive for selling or buying imported vehicles at the moment.