Tesla considers second gigafactory in Shanghai
Tesla is reportedly planning to start building a new plant in Shanghai as early as next month to more than double its production capacity in China. According to an agency report, this could allow Tesla to increase its production capacity in China to as many as two million electric cars per year.
This was reported by Reuters news agency, citing people familiar with the matter. According to the report, the new Tesla factory is to be built near the existing plant. This is located in the Lin-gang Special Area industrial park in the southeast of the metropolis. The investment amount and planned completion date do not emerge from the report.
The current plant, also known as Gigafactory 3 or Giga Shanghai, was put into operation by Tesla after less than a year of construction, but with only one production hall for the Model 3. Later, another hall was added, in which the Model Y is built. It is not known how large the first expansion stage of the second plant will be.
Recently, Chinese media reported that the production capacity of the existing Tesla factory in Shanghai is to be increased to over one million vehicles per year in the coming years. The new factory, whose exact location within the Lin-gang Special Area is not mentioned by Reuters, is also expected to reach one million vehicles when completed. The article, citing the insiders, said, “Once the new plant is fully operational, Tesla will have the capacity to produce up to 2 million cars per year at its expanded Shanghai facility.”
Tesla declined to comment when asked by Reuters. The Shanghai municipal government also did not respond to a request for comment.
With a capacity of two million e-cars, Tesla would be the largest foreign manufacturer in China. According to news agency figures, Toyota built 1.6 million cars through various joint ventures in 2021. At GM, the figure was 1.4 million vehicles jointly with SAIC – but across all powertrain types for both GM and Toyota. Volkswagen is currently planning to build production capacity for one million electric vehicles in China by 2023.
One of the sources told Reuters that Tesla plans to increase weekly production at the existing plant to 22,000 vehicles, which would translate to about 1.1 million vehicles over the course of a year. Reuters also quotes from a permit application Tesla filed with the city government this week that calls for expanding parts production at the plant and increasing daily hours by hiring new workers. The reason given is the growing demand for exports. More than 1,500 jobs at the plant had already been advertised at the beginning of February.
The plant’s previous capacity is stated by Tesla to be over 450,000 vehicles annually, most recently confirmed in the 2021 annual report released at the end of January. Capacity at the main Fremont plant is 100,000 Model S/X and 500,000 Model 3/Y, according to the annual report. No official figures for the gigafactories in Grünheide and Texas were given in the annual report.
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