‘Needs intense…’: Much like India, Indonesia wants Tesla to make cars locally

Indonesia President Joko Widodo has made it clear that if Tesla wants to have a strong presence in his country, the US-based EV (electric vehicle) giant will have to locally manufacture its cars and not just the batteries used in such cars. In an interview to Bloomberg, Widodo made his position amply clear about wanting an entire EV ecosystem to bloom and flourish in Indonesia.

Indonesia has emerged as a key country for Tesla with the company signing deals worth $5 billion to buy nickel just earlier this month. Nickel is a key component required in the manufacturing process of batteries that are the core of modern-day EVs. Indonesia has high reserves of nickel and while it wants companies to come and invest, Widodo says Tesla ought to manufacture its EVs in his country. “What we want is the electric car, not the battery. For Tesla, we want them to build electric cars in Indonesia," he was quoted as saying. "We want a huge ecosystem of electric cars."

Widodo said he is also willing to give it time that may be needed to convince Tesla CEO Elon Musk to consider his country has a manufacturing hub. Musk had previously confirmed that Tesla would establish at least 10 factories across the world by 2030 in an effort to touch 20 million unit per annum production target. “It is still a discussion. Everything needs time. I don’t want to be quick with no result. It needs intense communication and the result will show," Widodo further said.

Tesla is reportedly hunting for newer markets where it wants to sell its EVs and had also been considering India, the world's fourth-largest automotive market. But the Indian government had clearly stated that Tesla would need to manufacture its vehicles locally rather than bring in China-made units from its Shanghai facility. It had also been made clear that Tesla would not get any special tax breaks. Musk had hit back saying that a manufacturing unit may be considered only if its imported units succeed here. (Read more here)

At present, Tesla manufactures its vehicles in the US, China and Germany.