Tesla secures fourth India office in Mumbai as part of expansion strategy

As part of its broader strategy to expand operations in India and build a local ecosystem for future manufacturing and supply chain activities, Tesla has leased a new office space in central Mumbai’s Kurla west area, marking another step in its India entry.

This is Tesla’s fourth office in India, after its engineering facility in Pune, a registered office in Bengaluru, and a 30-seater office near Mumbai’s central business district, Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) secured for a year.

This is also the second office transaction concluded by Tesla in quick succession over the past two months, reflecting its increasing focus on operational readiness in India.

The US company’s India arm Tesla India Motor & Energy has signed a five-year lease for the new premises in Macrotech Developers’ Lodha Industrial and Logistics Park in Kurla spanning across 24,500 sq ft.

The agreement, registered in May, includes a starting monthly rent of Rs 37.53 lakh. Over the entire lease term, the company will pay more than Rs 24 crore in rent.

The license period of five years starts on April 20 and the agreement includes a rent-free period of one month and ten days, with rent payments beginning on June 1, showed the documents accessed through realty data analytics firm CRE Matrix.

The rent is subject to an annual escalation of 5% and Common Area Maintenance (CAM) charges are set at Rs 10 per sq ft of chargeable area, with a 5% escalation applicable at the start of each financial year.

This deal follows the company securing its first India showroom in BKC, marking a key milestone in its long-awaited entry to its growing EV market. This deal had set a national record in terms of lease rentals at Rs 881 per sq ft a month.

ET’s email query to Tesla India and the property owner Macrotech Developers remained unanswered until the time of going to press.

The move assumes significance and indicates Tesla’s approach to India that has shifted into high gear since February, following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with Musk during his US visit. The EV giant had earlier raised concerns over steep import duties in India.

Tesla's India entry has been the subject of much anticipation, particularly after recent policy tweaks by the Indian government aimed at encouraging global EV manufacturers to invest and set up manufacturing units locally.

Though Tesla is yet to confirm a factory location, moves like this lease suggest groundwork is quietly underway.