HONG KONG, April 9 (Reuters) - A Tesla founder

and former chief executive said on Tuesday it was a "shame" to

hear that the automaker was scrapping its low-cost car plans

amid fierce competition in China.

Martin Eberhard was speaking at the HSBC Global Investment

Summit in Hong Kong. On Friday, Reuters reported that Tesla was

cancelling its long-promised inexpensive car that investors had

been counting on to drive growth.

The decision represents an abandonment of a longstanding

goal that Tesla chief Elon Musk has often characterized as its

primary mission: affordable electric cars for the masses. His

first "master plan" for the company in 2006 called for

manufacturing luxury models first, then using the profit to

finance a "low cost family car".

"We've both read in the news, Tesla delaying or eliminating

their low-end Model 2 programme, which is a shame for them, but

it's a sign that China has a chance to really spread there,"

Eberhard said.

Tesla's cheapest current car, the Model 3 sedan, retails for

about $39,000 in the United States. The now-cancelled

entry-level vehicle, sometimes described as the Model 2, was

expected to start at about $25,000.

Three sources told Reuters that while Tesla had scrapped

plans for its inexpensive car, it would continue to develop

self-driving robotaxis on the same small-vehicle platform.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for

comment.