Tag: CATL

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Arun Plus CATL CATL Thailand China Deals Electric eMobility eV

CATL to supply CTP battery pack production line to Thailand’s Arun Plus

and Arun Plus have entered into a CTP partnership agreement to provide the Thai company with a CTP production line and share CTP production technology.

(Image credit: CATL)

Chinese power battery giant CATL has entered into a new agreement with Thailand's Arun Plus, following the signing of a CTP (cell to pack) technology licensing agreement between the two a year ago.

CATL recently entered into a CTP partnership agreement with Arun Plus to provide the Thai company with a CTP production line and share CTP production technology, according to a press release yesterday.

The two parties will work to meet local demand for electric vehicle (EV) production in Thailand and help Thailand become a battery production hub in Southeast Asia, according to the release.

Arun Plus, the EV subsidiary of Thai state energy group PTT, has well-established energy infrastructure in Thailand.

In November 2022, Arun Plus established an EV manufacturing subsidiary to capitalize on the growing demand for electric vehicles in Thailand and Southeast Asia.

The latest partnership will help enhance Arun Plus' EV production capacity and drive the building of a power battery ecosystem in Thailand and Southeast Asia, CATL said.

It is also an important step in CATL's efforts to improve its global footprint and will help the company explore diverse partnership models in markets including Southeast Asia to accelerate the global electrification and clean energy transition, the power battery giant said.

On May 13, 2022, CATL announced that it had signed a strategic partnership memorandum with Arun Plus, licensing the latter to use CTP technology.

Arun Plus and CATL will supply battery products to Horizon Plus, a joint venture between Arun Plus and Foxconn that plans to produce EVs in Thailand in 2024, and other EV brands, according to last year's press release.

CTP is a technology that integrates cells into battery packs without modules, increasing the system energy density of packs, simplifying manufacturing processes and saving costs, CATL previously said.

On October 27, 2021, CATL announced an agreement with Hyundai Mobis, the parts division of Hyundai Motor, to license its CTP technology.

CATL will support Hyundai Mobis in the supply of CTP-related battery products in South Korea and globally, it said at the time.

Thailand in talks with CATL over potential battery plant

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Battery Capacity Battery News Changan China Electric eMobility eV

Power battery industry faces serious overcapacity in China, says Changan chairman

China will need 1,000-1,200 GWh of power battery capacity by 2025, but the industry is already planning for 4,800 GWh of capacity, according to Changan's chairman.

The chairman of one of China's largest automakers has warned about oversupply in the power battery industry, at a time when the risk is a growing concern.

China's power battery industry is currently suffering from a serious overcapacity and the sector is bound to return to a rational state, Zhu Huarong, chairman of Changan Automobile, said today in a speech at an automotive forum in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing.

China will need 1,000-1,200 GWh of power battery capacity by 2025, but the industry is currently planning for 4,800 GWh of capacity, Zhu said.

In a speech at the 2022 China Auto Forum on November 9 last year, Zhu said the tight supply of chips and batteries facing China's new energy vehicle (NEV) industry had eased, but their expensive prices stand out, seriously affecting the profits and production of NEV companies.

High battery prices were caused by factors including raw material price increases, capital speculation, sellers' hesitation to sell and middlemen hoarding, Zhu said at the time.

Zhu's latest comments come as the issue of power battery overcapacity is a growing concern.

In a research note yesterday, Morgan Stanley analyst Jack Lu's team said that despite a near-term recovery in orders for China's battery industry, there will still be excess battery capacity and price competition is inevitable.

More and more second-tier battery suppliers are adopting increasingly aggressive pricing strategies, and may have to do the same, Lu's team said.

Power battery overcapacity is an industry consensus, but in the first quarter, expansion of power and storage batteries continued, the official Economic Information Daily said in a report yesterday.

In 2022, China's power battery shipments were about 480 GWh, while the installed power battery capacity was only about 260.94 GWh. Even counting the export volume and the installed power battery capacity in the segment including construction machinery, the current inventory pressure of the whole industry is still high, the report said, citing industry research institute GGII.

In the next few years, the structural overcapacity of power batteries will intensify, and the industry will enter a deep reshuffling stage, with a degree of competition that may be more severe than imagined, the report said.

China's power battery installed capacity in April was 25.1 GWh, up 89.4 percent year-on-year and down 9.5 percent from March, according to data released by the China Automotive Battery Innovation Alliance (CABIA) on May 11.

The power battery production in April was 47.0 GWh, up 38.7 percent year-on-year and down 8.3 percent sequentially, according to the CABIA.

May's data is expected to be available in a few days.

China EV battery installations in Apr: BYD regains top spot over CATL in LFP market

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China Electric eMobility eV Tesla

Tesla asks Chinese suppliers to build plants in Mexico, report says

is asking several Chinese supply chain companies to build factories in Mexico in order to replicate a Giga Shanghai and its supply chain system there, according to local media.

(Image: Tesla China video screenshot)

China's well-established electric vehicle (EV) industry chain is one of the key factors in Tesla's success in the country. Now, the US EV maker is reportedly looking to replicate it in Mexico.

Tesla is asking several Chinese supply chain companies to build factories in Mexico to replicate a Giga Shanghai and its supply chain system there, local media outlet 36kr reported today.

Tesla's pace is urgent and suppliers could lose orders amounting to hundreds of millions of yuan if they don't respond in time, the report said, citing a person familiar with the matter.

On March 1, Tesla unveiled plans to build a factory in Mexico for the production of next-generation cars at an Investor Day event.

Mexican Foreign Ministry officials had said the plant would invest more than $5 billion and have a planned capacity of 1 million vehicles.

Some of Tesla's suppliers in China have announced plans to build factories in Mexico since the beginning of this year.

Ningbo Xusheng Group said in late March that it would build a production base in Mexico, with a total investment of no more than $276 million. Late May, the construction of the project was officially launched in Mexico's Coahuila state.

If all goes well, the plant will be ready for production in July or August next year, 36kr said, citing a source close to the project.

According to the report, a number of Chinese manufacturers of production line equipment have already set up offices in Mexico to take charge of design, after-sales support and other business aspects.

Mexico is now a hotbed of investment, many customers are coming over, and there are even supply chain companies bringing production line workers to Mexico to build factories, the report quoted a Tesla supplier source as saying.

Low labor costs, and industrial chain support are Mexico's advantages. However, there are supply chain sources said that Mexico is not as mature as the European and American markets, social and geopolitical risks are relatively high, the report noted.

On July 18 last year, Bloomberg reported that Chinese power battery giant was considering building a manufacturing plant in at least two locations in Mexico, possibly to supply Tesla and Ford.

The CATL sites would help Mexico cement its role in the region's electric vehicle production, which has long been a major part of the auto industry's supply chain, the Bloomberg report noted.

Tesla's revamped Model 3 nears final trial production in Shanghai, report says

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Battery Swap CATL China Electric eMobility eV EVOGO

CATL extends coverage of its EVOGO battery swap service to Fuzhou

EVOGO's battery swap service was previously available in Xiamen, Hefei and Guiyang.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

EVOGO, the battery swap service brand of , China's largest power battery manufacturer, has brought its service to a new city.

EVOGO's battery swap service is now available in Fuzhou, the capital of Fujian province, with the first three battery swap stations already in operation, CATL said on June 6.

By the end of this year, EVOGO's service radius in the Fuzhou urban area is expected to narrow to 8 kilometers, said Ningde, Fujian-based CATL.

EVOGO's operating entity, CATL's subsidiary Contemporary Amperex Energy Service Technology (CAES), signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement with the subsidiaries of Sinopec and State Grid in Fujian on June 6.

(Image credit: CATL)

CATL unveiled the EVOGO brand on January 22, 2022, which offers a battery swap solution consisting of battery blocks, fast battery swap stations, and an app.

The battery blocks, called Choco-SEB (swapping electric block) by CATL, are mass-produced batteries developed specifically to enable shared battery swaps, allowing consumers to pick and choose from one or more batteries to flexibly match their mileage needs.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

EVOGO's battery swap service was officially launched on April 18, 2022, with Xiamen, Fujian being the first city to see the service available.

On June 18 last year, Hefei, Anhui province in eastern China saw the launch of EVOGO's battery swap service, becoming the second city to be covered by the service.

On December 12, CATL announced the expansion of EVOGO's battery swap service to a third city -- Guiyang in southwestern China's Guizhou province.

The first vehicle to support EVOGO's battery swap service is the NAT (Next Automatic Taxi) model of FAW's Bestune brand, which is aimed at the shared mobility market.

On April 27 last year, CATL announced that it had signed a framework agreement with EV startup Aiways to develop a battery swap-enabled model based on the Aiways U5, the second EVOGO battery swap-enabled model. Aiways is currently facing financial difficulties.

Last October 25, CATL said that the Dongfeng Peugeot-Citroën's Dongfeng Fukang ES600 sedan will have a variant capable of using EVOGO's battery swap service.

CATL officially unveils battery swap brand EVOGO, brings innovative battery block concept

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Battery News China Electric eMobility eV Svolt Energy Svolt Plant Svolt Thailand

Svolt Energy plans to build battery plant in Thailand, report says

Svolt Energy is planning to invest $30 million to build a battery module pack plant in Thailand, according to local media.

(Image credit: Svolt Energy)

Svolt Energy, a battery maker that spun off from Great Wall Motor, is said to be planning to build a battery factory in Thailand as manufacturers in China's new energy vehicle industry chain target Southeast Asian markets.

Svolt Energy is planning to invest $30 million to build a battery module pack plant in Thailand, local media Cailian reported today, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Svolt Energy has incorporated a wholly owned subsidiary, Svolt Energy Technology (Thailand) Co Ltd, in Thailand and is currently planning the construction of the new plant, the report said, without providing further details.

Svolt Energy was originally the power battery division of Great Wall Motor, which began research and development of batteries in 2012.

It became independent from Great Wall Motor in February 2018 to work on next-generation battery materials, cells, modules, PACKs, BMS, and energy storage technologies.

The battery maker currently has 11 production sites in China and one overseas production site in Heusweiler, Saarland, Germany, according to its website.

On September 9, 2022, Svolt Energy said it will build a cell factory for the European market in Lauchhammer, Brandenburg, Germany, which will be its second factory overseas.

Svolt Energy plans to produce the cells at its Lauchhammer facility and process them into packs at its Heusweiler facility, the company said at the time.

In 2019, Svolt Energy said it was aiming to build 120 GWh of power battery capacity globally by 2025.

It made several subsequent increases to that target and raised it to 600 GWh in December 2021.

In April, Svolt Energy installed 0.42 GWh of power batteries in China, ranking 8th with a 1.66 percent share, according to the China Automotive Battery Innovation Alliance (CABIA).

and had 10.26 GWh and 7.32 GWh of batteries installed in April, ranking first and second with 40.83 percent and 29.11 percent shares respectively.

Svolt Energy's Dragon Armor Battery makes real-life debut at Shanghai auto show

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CATL China Electric eMobility eV Insights Research Note

CATL shares plunge after Morgan Stanley downgrades rating to underweight

Second-tier battery makers may adopt a more aggressive pricing strategy to gain market share in the second half of the year, and could face increasing risks to its market share and margins in the domestic market, Morgan Stanley said.

Morgan Stanley downgraded its rating on CATL, citing market share risks, sending shares of the Chinese power battery giant tumbling in morning trading.

"We downgrade CATL to UW as we think second-tier battery makers may adopt more aggressive pricing strategies to gain market share in 2H23," analyst Jack Lu's team said in a research note sent to investors earlier today.

As of press time, CATL shares traded in Shenzhen were down about 6 percent to near their lowest point of the year.

Earlier this year, Morgan Stanley upgraded CATL to equal weight, while being bearish on most battery material makers, as it believes CATL is better able to respond to slowing demand and leverage its cost advantages and bargaining power across the broader value chain.

Now, Lu's team believes that the dual-sourcing battery strategy of local EV companies may help the Tier 2 battery makers achieve their goals, while CATL may face increasing risks in terms of market share and margins in the domestic market.

In February, CATL launched a lithium rebate program to trade cheap lithium resources for market share. However, the subsequent plunge in lithium prices to below RMB 200,000 per ton has led to significant uncertainty about the program, the team said, adding that they have not received any further news about the program.

Meanwhile, battery makers have been offering fairly significant price cuts against the backdrop of falling lithium prices in the second quarter, the team noted.

"Our checks with tier-two battery makers indicate that the price cuts could be in the range of 10-20% during the quarter, with some battery makers likely offering more aggressive cuts than others," the team wrote.

Such actions could threaten CATL's market share in its domestic market, and market share potential is an important stock price driver, the team said.

CATL's power battery installed base in China was 10.26 GWh in April, ranking first with a 40.83 percent share, but down from 44.95 percent in March, China Automotive Battery Innovation Alliance (CABIA) data from last month showed. Data for May is Expected to be available in a few days.

(NYSE: NIO) and (NASDAQ: LI) are bringing in new battery suppliers instead of making CATL their sole supplier, Lu's team noted.

"With many new models being launched in the domestic EV market, we think CATL's domestic market share could come under pressure," the team said.

As background, since late last year, regulatory filings for NIO's new NT 2.0-based models have shown battery suppliers that include the smaller CALB in addition to CATL.

Last month, NIO filed to use semi-solid-state batteries from Beijing WeLion New Energy Technology in its models.

On February 8, Li Auto officially launched its first five-seat SUV, the Li L7, and announced the introduction of Sunwoda Electric Vehicle Battery and Svolt Energy as new battery suppliers.

More and more Tier 2 companies are adopting increasingly aggressive pricing strategies, and CATL may have to do the same, according to Lu's team.

Despite a short-term recovery in value chain orders, there will still be excess battery capacity in the short term and price competition is inevitable, the team said.

In addition to the market share pressure it faces domestically, Lu's team believes CATL's overseas path is increasingly uncertain.

"Some investors have argued that CATL's market share overseas is yet to see signs of decline; however, in our view CATL's overseas market is under increasing scrutiny and becoming more and uncertain, limiting visibility," the team wrote.

CATL has tried to penetrate overseas markets through exports and localization of production, but both pathways are increasingly at risk due to geopolitical tensions, particularly in the US, the team said.

Notably, Lu's team stressed that if the cost of battery materials and minerals continues to fall, this could give car companies more room to pursue new technologies and other battery performance metrics.

"If this is the case, CATL could regain any lost market share and continue to dominate the global battery market, leveraging its strong R&D capabilities and bargaining power over the supply chain. Our bull case scenario assumes 60% global market share in the long term," the team wrote.

Global EV battery market share in Jan-April: CATL 35.9%, BYD 16.1%

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Battery Data Battery News BYD CALB CATL China Electric eMobility eV Gotion High-Tech Monthly Data SNE Research Tesla

Global EV battery market share in Jan-April: CATL 35.9%, BYD 16.1%

In January-April, CALB's power battery installations of 8.4 GWh surpassed Samsung SDI's 7.5 GWh, according to SNE Research.

China's and (OTCMKTS: BYDDY) continued to be the world's two largest power battery manufacturers in January-April, the latest data show.

In January-April, global battery consumption for electric vehicles (EVs) totaled 182.5 GWh, up 49 percent from 122.5 GWh in the same period last year, according to data released today by South Korean market research firm SNE Research.

Among them, CATL installed 65.6 GWh of batteries from January to April, up 55.6 percent from 42.1 GWh in the same period last year.

The Chinese power battery giant continues to rank No. 1 in the world with a 35.9 percent share and remains the only one in the world with a market share of more than 30.0 percent.

This was higher than its 34.4 percent share in the same period last year and up from its 35.0 percent share in the January-March period.

CATL's batteries are installed in many major passenger EV models in China's domestic market, such as the Model 3, Model Y, SAIC Mulan, Y and ET5, as well as Chinese commercial vehicle models, and continue to grow steadily, SNE Research said.

BYD installed 29.4 GWh of power batteries from January to April, up 108.3 percent from 14.1 GWh in the same period last year.

The company ranked second with a 16.1 percent share from January to April, up from 11.5 percent in the same period last year but down from 16.2 percent in January-March.

BYD has gained popularity in China's domestic market with its competitive pricing by establishing a vertically integrated supply chain management, including battery self-sufficiency and vehicle manufacturing, SNE Research said.

With the launch of the Atto3 model, BYD showed explosive growth by expanding its market share outside of China in Asia and Europe, SNE Research said.

LG Energy Solution installed 25.7 GWh of power batteries from January to April, up 49.3 percent year-on-year.

The South Korean company ranked third in the world with a 14.1 percent share, unchanged from a year ago.

Japan's Panasonic was fourth with 8.2 percent share, South Korea's SK On was fifth with 5.2 percent share and China's CALB was sixth with 4.6 percent share.

South Korea's Samsung SDI of, China's Gotion High-tech of China, Eve Energy and Sunwoda ranked seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth respectively, with shares of 4.1 percent, 2.4 percent, 1.8 percent and 1.5 percent from January to April, respectively.

It is worth noting that CALB's power battery installed base of 8.4 GWh exceeded Samsung SDI's 7.5 GWh in the January to April period.

In January-March, CALB was 5.7 GWh, lower than Samsung SDI's 6.5 GWh.

In 2023, Chinese companies are expected to enter overseas markets such as the US and Europe in preparation for a gradual decline in growth rates in China's domestic market, the largest EV market, according to SNE Research.

The European EV market, which has relatively fewer political issues than the US, is attracting attention as a strategic point for seeking to diversify the battery supply chain, the report noted.

Going forward, the share of LFP batteries in Europe is expected to increase as Chinese companies enter the European market in earnest, the report said.

CATL unveils Condensed Battery for electric aircrafts and EVs

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China Electric Elon Musk eMobility eV Giga Shanghai Tesla

Musk ends China visit after visiting Tesla Shanghai plant last night

Musk arrived in Shanghai from Beijing yesterday evening and toured the Shanghai factory overnight.

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) CEO Elon Musk has wrapped up his brief visit to China, where he spent the past two days meeting with several Chinese officials and visiting Tesla's Shanghai factory.

Musk's private jet with registration number N628TS took off from Shanghai's Hongqiao Airport at 11:23 am Thursday and is expected to arrive in Austin, where Tesla is headquartered, in 12 hours and 50 minutes, according to flight-tracking platform Variflight.

The Tesla CEO arrived in Shanghai from Beijing yesterday evening and toured the Tesla Shanghai factory overnight.

Early this morning, Grace Tao, Tesla's vice president of external affairs, shared two images on Weibo showing Musk with Giga Shanghai employees.

(Images from Grace Tao's Weibo.)

The Weibo was posted at 0:28, while Tao was at the facility, her Weibo location information shows.

Neither Tao nor Tesla disclosed the exact schedule of Musk's activities at Giga Shanghai, though Bloomberg reported that the first cars to roll off the line at the plant on Thursday were prototypes of the updated Model 3 sedan.

Musk arrived in Beijing on May 30 on his private jet, and was later met by Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang in Beijing.

Tesla opposes decoupling and supply chain disconnection and is willing to continue to expand its business in China and share in China's development opportunities, Musk said, according to a statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

On May 31, Chinese Minister of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) Jin Zhuanglong met with Musk in Beijing, where the two sides exchanged views on topics including the development of new energy vehicles (NEVs) and smart connected vehicles, according to an announcement from the MIIT.

Musk then visited China's Ministry of Commerce and was met by Commerce Minister Wang Wentao.

In addition to the meeting with Chinese officials, Musk was seen meeting with Robin Zeng, chairman of , the world's largest power battery manufacturer, on May 30.

A picture circulating on Chinese social networks shows Musk and Zeng together in the lobby of a hotel.

Musk meets with more officials as he begins 2nd day of China visit

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China Electric eMobility eV Geely Geely Thailand

Geely reportedly plans to enter Thailand EV market

is in the early stages of planning its entry into Thailand's EV market, including weighing imported and locally made models, Reuters reported.

(A car displayed by Geely's Livan brand at the Shanghai auto show in April 2023. Image credit: CnEVPost)

Thailand is a key stop for Chinese automakers as they expand internationally, with Geely reportedly becoming the latest to target that Southeast Asian market.

Geely is in the early stages of planning its entry into Thailand's electric vehicle (EV) market, including weighing imported and locally built models, Reuters reported today, citing two people familiar with the matter.

Considerations include whether to sell entry-level EVs in Thailand, as well as an electric pickup truck under its new Radar brand, the people said.

Thailand's Board of Investment held discussions with five major Chinese automaker makers, including Geely, during a road show in China in April, the report said, citing Narit Therdsteerasukdi, the board's secretary general.

The other companies are , Changan Automobile, JAC Motors and Jiangling Motors, according to the report.

Discussions with Geely have faced additional complications because the company has given working-level autonomy to brand-level operating groups such as Geometry and Radar, the report said, citing a person familiar with the matter.

Geely needs to decide what models to bring to Thailand, and its review includes the possibility of building a plant in Thailand, according to the report.

Geometry, an EV brand Geely launched in 2019, sold 57,877 units in the January-April period, up 73.54 percent year-on-year, according to data monitored by CnEVPost.

Radar, Geely's outdoor lifestyle brand unveiled in July 2022, launched its first model, the RD6 electric pickup, in China in November 2022.

The Thai government's goal is that EV production is expected to account for 30 percent of total vehicle production by 2030.

The country hopes to become a major EV hub in Southeast Asia, which provides an opportunity for Chinese automakers.

On March 10, BYD broke ground on its plant in Thailand, when the company held a ceremony to deliver the 9,999th and 10,000th BYD Atto 3s.

BYD's plant is expected to start production in 2024 with an annual capacity of about 150,000 units.

Hozon Auto's brand also broke ground on a plant in Bangkok, Thailand, on March 10, which will be its main manufacturing base for building right-hand drive electric vehicles for export to ASEAN.

In addition to car companies, major suppliers in China's EV industry chain are also targeting the Thai market.

Gotion Singapore, a wholly owned subsidiary of Volkswagen-backed Chinese power battery giant Gotion High-tech, signed an agreement with Thailand's Nuovo Plus Company Limited on December 15, 2022, to set up a joint venture, according to a bourse announcement at the time.

The two parties plan to establish a joint venture company, NV Gotion Co Ltd, in Thailand to build a power lithium-ion battery pack production base, according to Gotion's announcement.

On May 13, 2022, announced that it had signed a strategic cooperation memorandum with Thailand's Arun Plus to cooperate on battery-related businesses in the ASEAN region.

On May 3 of this year, a Reuters report said that Thailand was in talks with CATL and other battery manufacturers to build production facilities in the Southeast Asian country.

Geely Holding becomes 3rd largest shareholder of Aston Martin, increases stake to 17%

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China Electric Elon Musk eMobility eV Tesla

Musk meets with more officials as he begins 2nd day of China visit

Musk met with China's Minister of Industry and Information Technology and Minister of Commerce today. He met with China's foreign minister after arriving in Beijing yesterday and was seen meeting with 's chairman.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

(NASDAQ: TSLA) CEO Elon Musk began the second day of his visit to China today, meeting with more local officials.

On May 31, Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) Minister Jin Zhuanglong met with Musk in Beijing, where they exchanged views on topics including the development of new energy vehicles (NEVs) and smart connected vehicles, according to an announcement from the MIIT.

The MIIT is China's industrial regulator, overseeing areas including the automotive industry.

Earlier today, Reuters reported that Musk visited China's Ministry of Commerce and met with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao.

Musk arrived in Beijing yesterday on its private jet, and was later met by Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang.

Tesla opposes decoupling as well as supply chain disconnection and is willing to continue to expand its business in China and share in China's development opportunities, Musk said, according to a statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry yesterday.

In addition to the meeting with Chinese officials, Musk was seen yesterday meeting with Robin Zeng, chairman of CATL, the world's largest power battery maker.

A picture circulating on Chinese social networks showed Musk and Zeng together in the lobby of a hotel.

Neither Tesla nor CATL made an announcement about the meeting. Local media outlet The Paper cited industry sources as saying the talks could include cell supply for Tesla's Megafactory in Shanghai, future cooperation on a battery plant in North America and power cell supply.

Tesla signed a contract with Shanghai's Lingang authorities on April 9 to build a new Megafactory in the area, which will be dedicated to the production of Tesla's energy storage product Megapack.

The Megafactory will be Tesla's first energy storage system factory outside of the US home market, with an initial planned annual production capacity of up to 10,000 commercial energy storage batteries and an energy storage scale of nearly 40 GWh, with products to be supplied to the global market.

The plant is scheduled to start construction in the third quarter of this year and go into operation in the second quarter of 2024, according to an announcement by the Lingang special area administration.

Tesla's vehicle assembly plant in Shanghai is located in the Lingang area, which began operations in late 2019 and has now become Tesla's largest EV production site in the world.

Tesla sold 75,842 China-made vehicles in April, including 39,956 delivered in China and 35,886 exported, according to data released earlier in the month by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang meets with Tesla CEO Elon Musk in Beijing

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