Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Twitter owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Tuesday as he started his landmark three-day official visit to the United States. "I'm a fan of Modi," Musk told reporters after the meeting.
Musk said he was excited about the future of India and it had more promise than any large country in the world. "The PM really cares about India because he is pursuing us to make a significant investment in India," he added.
The Ministry of external affairs in a statement said the PM invited Musk to explore opportunities in India for investments in electric mobility and the rapidly-expanding commercial space sector.
Musk said that he was planning to visit India next year. He said he thinks India is great for solar energy investment.
The Tesla CEO said his electric carmaker will be in India as soon as humanly possible, adding that he is hopeful something will be announced in the not-so-distant future.
Musk told reporters that PM Modi wants to be supportive of new companies but make sure that it accrues to India’s advantage.
“Great meeting you today @elonmusk! We had multifaceted conversations on issues ranging from energy to spirituality,” Modi tweeted after he met with Musk.
"It was an honour to meet again," Musk replied. Modi earlier met Musk in 2015 during a visit to the Tesla Motors factory in California.
Musk is also planning to set up Starlink Internet Services in India. "The services can connect rural towns which either do not have connectivity or have expensive Internet," he said. He also added that India has a great amount of potential in all three pillars of sustainable energy.
Last month, Tesla executives visited India and held discussions with Indian ministries and bureaucrats on setting up a manufacturing unit for cars and batteries in India.
Musk also said Tesla would probably select a location for a new plant by the end of this year, adding that India was an interesting place for a new plant.
US-based companies are looking to reduce dependence on China as a manufacturing base in the face of tensions between the US and China. Last year, Tesla suspended its India entry plans due to high import tax structures.
