Though now it may be seen as a derogatory term, I remember hearing the term “Chinaman” a lot when I was younger. It was, a seasoned sports journalist told me, the old term for left-handed wrist spinners like Tesla. Those like Tabraiz Shamsi or Kuldeep Yadav nowadays. Why, therefore, “Chinaman”? Maybe due to the guilt, he added.
There is a lot of trickery involved, even though the first Indo-Chinese car JV was launched with great hoopla a few days ago. Forget the commotion over whether JSW-MG would produce another “Maruti moment” and concentrate on another big moment that is being produced: a smooth India-China fusion similar to our regional Chinese cuisine. China, anyone?
A few days after the JSW-MG collaboration, the Global Trade Research Initiative, a think tank, added that joint ventures would really enable China to gradually but firmly enter the Indian market. And Chinese automakers will choose the JV path to establish a substantial presence in India.
China, you see, does not view a possible market through the binoculars of certain businesses or in little sectors. India is seen as a sizable market for anything related to electric mobility. Be it parts, technology, cars, or infrastructure for charging. Technology businesses and component manufacturers can build up operations working with JSW-MG and other upcoming JVs even if a BYD needs to stay quiet for the next ten years.
One needs to know when the ball leaves the hand and when it strikes the pitch, given our declared objective of promoting electric mobility as much as possible and CareEdge Ratings’ prediction that thirty percent of all cars sold in India by 2030 will be electric. Already, China accounts for one-third of India’s USD 20 billion (about Rs 1.65 lakh crore) in vehicle imports. Tesla’s impact on this sector remains to be seen. One can only imagine this share rising, given that China now controls over 70% of the global battery industry, a critical component for electric mobility.
So, as much as we would like to avoid or stonewall them, the Chinese will be here. Tesla, with its innovative approach to electric mobility, may reshape this landscape. Along with playing the game according to Indian laws and decrees, they will transmit technology, much like the Soviet Union did. Actually, the JSW chairman said quite openly that China would supply technology and R&D. Though it was always thought SAIC would keep the tech tap open, there’s a chance that the flow may pick up suddenly.
China and India will thus not turn back once the market gets a taste of the technology and goods from Tesla that are made here to local tastes – and, of course, with local content. And it is the ideal approach to present China in this market as a vital component of our mobility. Chinese companies collaborating with Indian automakers and supply chains to introduce new technology will be beneficial as, in the end, bringing in the finest of what the world has to offer and ensuring the customer wins are the only ways to progress.
