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After recent reports that Tesla planned to build an electric vehicle (EV) parts recycling facility in Shanghai, a new report claims the company is ceasing operations in expanding the Gigafactory in China.
U.S. zero-emissions automaker Tesla has put a pause on plans to expand its Shanghai Gigafactory into a center for global export due to increasing uncertainty in U.S. and China’s relations, according to unnamed people familiar with the matter, reports Reuters.
Tesla Acquires Plot of Land South of Gigafactory Shanghai, Report Says https://t.co/yGSIoV2vOR
— TeslaNorth.com (@RealTeslaNorth) March 23, 2021
During the Trump administration, the White House approved a tariff increase on Chinese goods from 10 percent to 25 percent, and that rate still remains alongside previously-existing levies. As a result, Tesla plans to limit production output from Gigafactory Shanghai, as reported by two of the four people familiar with the situation.
But Tesla told Reuters in a statement Gigafactory Shanghai was “developing as planned.”
While Tesla considered expanding its Model 3 sedan export efforts, including potential plans to export more to the U.S., the company’s Shanghai Gigafactory currently still exports to nearby regions like Australia, Japan, and much of Europe until the incoming completion of Gigafactory Berlin.
Tesla also led EV sales globally in this year’s first quarter, despite overall competition from the Wuling HongGuang Mini EV – a very affordable zero-emissions vehicle developed specifically for the Chinese market through a joint venture between General Motors (GM) and Wuling.
