Tesla Inc. TSLA exported its one-millionth vehicle from its gigafactory in Shanghai nearly four years after shipping the first vehicle overseas, the American EV giant said on Saturday.
What Happened: “Exported the 1 millionth car from Giga Shanghai,” Tesla wrote on one of its official X accounts. The post was adjoined by a picture of several cars arranged to form the words “1M” beside a port.
Tesla’s gigafactory in Shanghai manufactures its cheaper offerings – the Model 3 and the Model Y – for sales within China as well as export to markets including Europe. Tesla began exporting from the factory in the first half of 2021. The factory now has an installed annual vehicle capacity of over 950,000 units.
Tesla sold 86,697 China-made EVs in August, including exports and sales within the country, as per China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) data. The August sales numbers mark a significant growth of 17% compared to July and 3% year-on-year. However, the company's biggest rival and Chinese EV giant BYD Co sold 148,470 battery electric passenger vehicles last month and 222,384 plug-in hybrid passenger vehicles.
In the January-August period, Tesla China sold 587,437 vehicles, down 6.01% year-on-year.
Why It Matters: Tesla is also reportedly planning to produce a six-seat version of its Model Y SUV starting next year in China.
"While the automotive market in China remains among the most competitive globally, we feel that our cost structure and focus on core functionality that drives value for customers – including autonomy – position us well for the long-term," Tesla said in its second-quarter earnings report in July.
Earlier this month, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that the factory in China is running at “max capacity.”
The European Commission, meanwhile, is nearing proposing final tariffs of up to 35.3% on electric vehicles manufactured in China, including Teslas, in addition to the standard 10% car import duty applied by the EU.
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