Musk was scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and announce plans to enter the Indian market but postponed it citing ‘Tesla obligations.’
China is Musk’s second biggest market for Tesla.
Days after deferring his trip to India, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is reportedly heading to China for a surprise visit.
China is Musk’s second biggest market for Tesla.
Musk was scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and announce plans to enter the Indian market but postponed it citing ‘Tesla obligations.’
He expressed intentions to reschedule the visit later this year, which was expected to include announcements of major investments in an auto factory aimed at producing a small, affordable model. Musk, according to Reuters, is seeking to meet senior Chinese officials in Beijing to discuss the rollout of Full-Self Driving (FSD) software in China and to obtain approval to transfer data collected in the country abroad to train algorithms for its autonomous driving technologies.
Musk’s visit to China was not flagged publicly, the report claimed.
Falcon Landing?
The Reuters report said a Gulfstream private jet with tail number N272BG, registered to Falcon Landing, a company connected to SpaceX and Tesla, landed at Beijing Capital Airport on Sunday, citing Chinese flight tracking app Flight Manager.
The other jet registered under Falcon Landing is N628TS, which is Musk’s main jet that he used to travel to China on his last trip nearly a year ago, when he met with Chinese government officials in Beijing and visited Tesla’s Shanghai factory.
Musk’s visit coincides with the Beijing autoshow, which opened last week and ends on May 4. Tesla does not have a booth at China’s largest autoshow and last attended in 2021. Tesla recently said it will be using its existing factories to produce new and more affordable vehicles.
This renders plans for new factories in Mexico and India in an uncertain state at least for the foreseeable future. The EV manufacturer aims to increase production by 50 per cent compared from 2023 to nearly 3 million vehicles before considering investments in new manufacturing lines.
While this approach may result in less cost reduction than previously anticipated, Tesla emphasized its ability to prudently expand vehicle volumes in a more capital-efficient manner amid uncertain market conditions.
