This seems to be good news, bad news. Tesla sold more electric cars manufactured at its Shanghai, China plant in November than in any previous month — 100,2921 to be exact. CnEVPost says that’s 90 percent of the 52,859 vehicles sold in November last year and 40 percent of the 71,704 vehicles sold in October. By the end of November, Tesla had sold 655,069 Chinese-made vehicles this year — 63 percent more than the 402,231 sold in the same period last year.
However, these numbers require an explanation. Not every car produced in Shanghai is sold to a customer in China. As a matter of fact, CnEVPost says Tesla’s pattern is to produce cars for export in the first half of each quarter and cars for local delivery in the second half. For comparison, of the 71,704 vehicles sold by Tesla Shanghai in October, 54,504 were exported and 17,200 vehicles were delivered to local consumers.
Certain Chinese incentives for electric vehicles will expire at the end of this year. Tesla China’s website states that the cars now on order are expected to be delivered before the end of the year, meaning customers can still expect to order a new Tesla and also take advantage of the existing incentives.
Rumored production cut at Tesla in Shanghai
Tesla Shanghai Gigafactory, courtesy of Tesla.
Despite all the good news about record sales, Reuters reports sources have said Bloomberg Tesla plans to cut Model Y production at its Shanghai plant by 20% in December. Tesla, of course, did not respond to a request for comment on the planned production cut and Reuters says it was not able to immediately determine the reason for the cut. Update: Tesla has called these rumors “untrue.” Reuters.
Inventory levels at the Shanghai factory reportedly surged after Tesla completed a modernization of production facilities last summer, with EV inventories rising at an all-time high in October.
Tesla recently cut prices in China to boost sales. In November, it announced that customers who purchase a Model 3 and Model Y produced by December 31 and also choose to insure their car with a Tesla insurance partner will receive a discount of up to RMB8,000 (US$1,150) on the final payment price will receive their cars. There are also new price incentives for US customers.
CnEVPost reported that on November 22, local tech media Huxiu quoted unnamed sources as saying that the two promotions in China will not boost sales as much as expected and that the company will introduce new “price cuts” before the end of the year. sin techanother Chinese news source later quoted Tesla’s response as saying the report was wrong but didn’t provide any further details.
bumps in the road ahead
China today faces great uncertainty as protests over Covid restrictions roil the political landscape, while lifelong President Xi Jinping appears keen to cement his role as the most authoritarian leader since Mao Zedong. To make matters worse, China’s economic growth is slowing, which could further disrupt political stability in China. All of these factors could derail Tesla’s carefully crafted plans to become a dominant electric car seller in China.
Tesla is reportedly preparing an update for the now five-year-old Model 3 sedan, which is due to go into production next year, and expects a significant increase in its global manufacturing capacity as new factories in Texas and Germany ramp up production.
Tesla is no longer the quirky upstart it used to be. It’s now a mainstream automaker and faces increasing competition from its rivals. The big question now is whether Tesla can make the transition from a typical “run and break” Silicon Valley startup to a mature company that must rely on more than disrupting the status quo to survive.
It’s odd to imagine Tesla, the radical auto company of a decade ago, becoming mainstream, but that’s exactly what happens when success knocks. It will be interesting to see how all of this plays out as the company’s founder continues to be distracted by the next shiny new object. Keep your seat belts securely fastened.
Do you appreciate CleanTechnica’s originality and coverage of CleanTechnica? Consider becoming a CleanTechnica Member, Supporter, Technician, or Ambassador—or a Patron on Patreon.
Don’t want to miss a cleantech story? Sign up for daily CleanTechnica news updates via email. Or follow us on Google News!
Do you have a tip for CleanTechnica, would you like to advertise or suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk Podcast? Contact us here.
