Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, the giant electric car producer, is not attending the ongoing, three-day Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2024. Amid the ongoing discussions around the announcement of a new Tesla plant in Gujarat, Rahul Gupta, the Managing Director of Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation, confirmed on Wednesday that Elon Musk will not be present while his company could be open to making investments.
Reportedly, a state government representative said to PTI, when asked about Musk’s presence at the three-day event inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi, “Musk is not expected. If he were to come, would he not attend the inaugural session? Will he be attending the seminars on day 2 and day 3?”
As reported by Business Today, the MD of Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation also said, “ It is the prerogative of any company to decide where to invest.” He mentioned that Elon Musk will not be disclosing the announcement of investment plans at the summit for Tesla’s entry into the Indian market.
He added that the government of Gujarat would be humbled if a company like Tesla made investments in a state that has such a robust infrastructure, well-developed ecosystem, policies and industrial landscape.
The state government officials have also said that Gujarat is Musk’s “first choice,” as a way to enter the Indian market with Tesla.
According to sources, Rushikesh Patel, a government spokesperson made a statement in December that Gujarat has been on Musk’s mind ever since he started a survey in India in search of a suitable location to set up the plant. Last year in June 2023, during his visit to USA, PM Narendra Modi had discussions with Elon Musk about setting up the electric car factory in India. Tesla had also previously mentioned investing up to $2 billion in the plant and committing to buying $15 billion worth of inputs from domestic automotive component producers.
