Tesla has reportedly proposed setting up a factory to roll out its “Powerwall” home energy storage system in India, as its founder Elon Musk plans to ramp up investment in the country after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this year.
Tesla made the proposal during recent meetings in New Delhi, according to a Reuters report citing anonymous sources.
Tesla was reportedly rebuffed in its efforts to get incentives for such a project. However, Indian officials said the government would help by offering subsidies to customers, for whom the price of the Powerwall could otherwise be prohibitive.
The proposal came amid more widely publicised talks around Tesla setting up a new electric vehicle factory in India.
Musk met Modi during the Prime Minister’s state visit to the US in June, with the billionaire tech tycoon saying his carmaker Tesla will be in India “as soon as humanly possible”.
The Powerwall system would be a particular boon for households in India, a country that has recently been stricken with power issues due to coal shortages amid heatwaves.
A previous meeting between Musk and Modi in 2015 at Tesla's California campus saw the Prime Minister express interest in the company’s energy storage systems, noting how they could help farmers.
