With Tesla’s Gigafactory in Las Vegas already producing lithium-ion batteries for the upcoming Model 3, there are reports that Tesla is already taking concrete steps to develop yet another Gigafactory in China. Hardly a surprise, Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently said during a TED Talk presentation that the company would ideally like to construct as many as four Gigafactories all across the globe.
“I will announce locations for between two and four Gigafactories later this year,” Musk said on stage, “probably four.”
While nothing is set in stone just yet, it’s widely believed that Tesla is eyeing another location in the United States along with a location in Europe and China. As for Tesla’s ambitions in China, the company earlier today confirmed that it’s actively exploring the possibility of developing a manufacturing plant in Shanghai.
“Tesla is deeply committed to the Chinese market, and we continue to evaluate potential manufacturing sites around the globe to serve the local markets,” a company spokesperson said today. “While we expect most of our production to remain in the US, we do need to establish local factories to ensure affordability for the markets they serve.”
China of course remains a huge target market for Tesla, and a local production plant in the country would help Tesla avoid a “25 percent import tariff that makes Tesla’s Model S sedans and Model X sport utility vehicles more costly than in U.S. showrooms,” Bloomberg reports.
Speaking to the strategic importance of China, the company in 2017 sold $1 billion worth of cars in the country in 2016 alone.
