Tesla Said To Be Suspending Giga Shanghai Production Again As China Tightens Pandemic Curbs

Tesla Inc TSLA is planning to halt production for a second time this month at Giga Shanghai amid intensifying COVID-19 restrictions, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter.

What Happened: Tesla will suspend production for at least one day beginning Monday at the Shanghai factory.

Tesla did not respond to Benzinga’s request for comment outside of business hours.

Shanghai is locking down half of the city to carry out a mass testing exercise related to new cases of COVID-19 cases. A portion of the area where the Tesla plant is located will be locked down for four days, the report said.

The Elon Musk-led company has not informed employees how long the production shutdown would last. Many workers who live there would face lockdowns.

Austin, Texas-based Tesla had to halt production earlier this month for two days at Giga Shanghai.

See Also: Is Tesla Giga Shanghai Production Halt A Way For China To Show Who Is The Manufacturing 'Boss?'

Why It Matters: China has been witnessing a sudden rise in COVID-19 cases, logging 1,254 cases on Saturday, compared with 102 a month earlier. This has led to the country's government imposing restrictions to curb the spread of the virus, which is impacting production across industries.

Giga Shanghai contributed to more than half of Tesla’s 2021 production. The EV maker earlier this month opened its Giga Berlin factory and is set to start commercial production at Giga Texas in April.

Price Action: Tesla stock closed 0.3% lower at $1,010.6 a share on Friday.

Photo courtesy: Tesla