Tesla eyes Satara land for EV assembly plant in Maharashtra, targets April 2026 launch: Report

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Tesla, led by billionaire Elon Musk, is now exploring land options in Satara, Maharashtra, to set up a CKD (Completely Knocked Down) electric vehicle assembly plant, according to a report by Business Standard. Nevertheless, CKD lowers the high import duties India imposes on fully constructed automobiles by importing the parts and assembling them domestically.

Megha Engineering, located in Hyderabad, and Tesla have previously discussed a possible joint venture. However, according to reports, these discussions did not result in an agreement. Although no agreement has been reached yet, the EV behemoth was also in contact with other Indian companies.

According to a source cited by Money Control, an official stated that Tesla may formally join the Indian market by April 2026.

Tesla has previously indicated that it was getting ready to enter the nation by posting job positions in Delhi, Pune, and Mumbai. These events came after Elon Musk met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he was in the United States.

Tesla's first showroom in Mumbai

According to a Reuters story from March, Tesla has agreed to open its first showroom in Mumbai. The area is approximately the size of a basketball court at 4,003 square feet. According to reports, Tesla has agreed to a five-year lease and would pay $446,000 (about Rs 3.7 crore) in rent for the first year.  Tesla is said to have finalised a five-year lease in BKC and the company is also reportedly working on opening a second showroom in Delhi's Aerocity. The starting monthly rent amounts to Rs 35, 26,665, showed documents accessed by CRE Matrix, a real estate data analytics firm.

Since then, Tesla has listed 20 job openings across India—15 in Mumbai and five in Pune—and has been actively exploring showroom locations in Mumbai and Delhi.

There have been many arguments, missed deadlines, and delays throughout Tesla's entry into India. By lowering import duties in exchange for Tesla agreeing to produce its vehicles domestically, the Indian government has demonstrated interest. Even if hiring and land exploration seem encouraging, there is still a lot of uncertainty.

Tesla has long been interested in entering the Indian market. Although the company initially planned to establish itself in 2022, it delayed its entry due to regulatory hurdles, high import duties, and infrastructure challenges for electric vehicles.