‘I’m a fan of Modi’; Elon Musk hails India’s solar energy bet
Photo credit PIB PMO
By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi, June 21: Billionaire Elon Musk, while betting on India, has said that he “tentatively plans to visit India next year”. Musk called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New York.
Musk, globally known to be one of the greatest ambassador of China, has stayed away from investing in India so far. “I am incredibly excited about the future of India. India has more promise than and any other large country in the world,” remarked Musk after meeting Modi in New York where the prime minister also met a number of business and thought leaders ahead of participating in the International Yoga Day celebrations.
Musk had travelled to Beijing this month, and reiterated his endorsement of the Chinese economy amid growing call for de-coupling within the U.S. Musk is known to bet on China for its electric vehicle Tesla.
“PM really cares about India because he is pursuing us to make significant investment in India. I am a fan of Modi. India is great for solar energy investment. I tentatively plan to visit India next year,” Musk was quoted by the PIB unit of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) having said after meeting with Modi.
Tesla was being rumoured for years to be in negotiations with the government of India, as well as a few private auto-makers for India foray. But Musk has so far stayed away from India even while Chinese, Korean and Japanese auto-makers have stepped up their scales in auto-manufacturing in India. Ford, one of the few American auto companies to have base in India, had also recently shut its shop and sold assets to Tata Motors.
While Musk was quoted of having spoken highly on the prospects of solar energy investment, he is seen to keeping India’s e-vehicle evolution at arm’s length. “He wants certain concessions, and the Government of India as a policy does not have space to accord such support for a private entity,” a Union Minister, during an informal discussion, said.
The Indian government is incentivizing the e-vehicles by keeping the prices of petrol and diesel high despite the crude oil rates coming down to record low. Some of the state governments are also subsidizing buyers of e-vehicles.
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