Elon Musk announces the first Tesla Gigafactory outside US, in Shanghai

Today, Tesla will be breaking ground for its Shanghai Gigafactory, which is the company’s first outside the US. In Shanghai, Tesla will begin manufacturing both batteries and the Model 3 electric vehicles by year-end. [caption id=“attachment_5848351” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”] Tesla Inc. founder Elon Musk. image: Reuters[/caption] Company chief Elon Musk has tweeted in a Twitter thread, ahead of the start of construction of the site, that the factory will produce affordable versions of the Model 3 and Model Y for greater China. Tesla plans to produce its Model 3 and Model Y cars in the initial phase of production at the Shanghai plant, with an annual capacity of 250,000 vehicles. High-volume Model 3 production in Gigafactory 3 is expected to start sometime in 2020.

Aiming to finish initial construction this summer, start Model 3 production end of year & reach high volume production next year

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 7, 2019

Shanghai Giga will produce affordable versions of 3/Y for greater China. All Model S/X & higher cost versions of Model 3/Y will still be built in US for WW market, incl China.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 7, 2019

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A local plant will help Tesla lower prices in the market to compete with a new generation of local rivals including Nio Inc, Byton and XPeng Motors. “Affordable cars must be made on same continent as customers,” Musk said. The Shanghai Tesla Gigafactory would also be China’s first wholly foreign-owned car plant, a reflection of China’s broader shift to open up its car market even amid the whipsawing trade war. With inputs from Reuters