2023-09-22 02:20:29
© Reuters. Tesla’s Powerwall displayed at an event in Hawthorne, California 4/30/2015 REUTERS/Patrick T. Fallon/File
Por Aditya Kalra
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Tesla (NASDAQ:) has drawn up plans to produce and sell battery storage systems in India and has submitted a proposal to authorities seeking incentives to build a factory, two sources familiar with the plan said.
Tesla has been in negotiations for weeks to set up a new electric vehicle factory in India, where a car priced around $24,000 would be manufactured, with discussions overseen directly by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, until now, there was no news about the investment in renewable energy.
At recent meetings in New Delhi, Tesla proposed supporting the country’s battery storage capabilities with its “Powerwall,” a system that can store energy from solar panels or the electrical grid for use at night or during outages, the sources said. They wanted to be identified because the matter is confidential.
While Tesla is seeking a range of incentives to set up a battery storage factory, Indian authorities have said the demands would not be available, one of the sources said. However, the government could help create a fair business model for the company by offering subsidies to product buyers, the source said.
Although both Tesla and the Indian government remain interested in the proposal, and New Delhi continues to analyze it, the plan’s implementation is not certain, the first source said.
Tesla, the Indian government’s top spokesman and the Commerce Ministry did not respond to requests for comment.
India has been increasing electricity supplies to cities and towns, but still faces shortages at peak times due to increased demand. The country largely relies on coal-based power generation as storage technologies are expensive and not yet widespread.
Tesla’s Powerwall is a three-foot-tall unit designed to be hung in a garage or outside a house. The product is aimed at domestic and light commercial use, but Tesla could consider developing larger solutions for the industry if the plan in India comes to fruition, the second source said, without elaborating.
(Additional reporting by Aditi Shah, Sarita Chaganti Singh and Sudarshan Varadhan)
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