Aerial photo taken on August 24, 2019 shows Tesla Gigafactory in East China's Shanghai. Photo: CNSphoto

US-based new-energy vehicle (NEV) maker Tesla's move to full-swing operations in China would be an opportunity for the domestic NEV industry in the long term, a Chinese official said, in response to reports that Tesla will further cut the prices of its Shanghai-made Model 3 this year, which could bring massive pressure for domestic rivals.

Even though mass production and lower prices of Tesla's China-made series would cast a shadow on domestic brands, it could also force them to enhance technical innovation and speed up their strategic upgrading, Miao Wei, minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), said at a press conference in Beijing on Monday.

As the first wholly foreign-owned enterprise in China's NEV sector, the rapid completion and development of Tesla's Gigafactory in Shanghai further demonstrates China's determination to create an international business environment and promote a new round of opening-up, Miao stated.

It took less than one year for the factory to go from breaking ground in January 2019 to making its first deliveries on December 30, 2019.

Tesla's move to mass production and lower prices for its Shanghai-made vehicles could bring greater benefits to Chinese consumers, Miao said.

In December, Tesla's Model 3 was included in the government list of NEVs exempted from vehicle purchase taxes by the MIIT.

With a favorable environment, Tesla has been attaching great importance to its development in the Chinese market. "We'll continue to make significant investments in China, making Model 3, Model Y and future models as well in China," Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in Shanghai on January 7.

According to Tesla's official account on China's Twitter-like social media platform Weibo, the company has changed its map data provider to China's technology giant Baidu. Tesla has also been recruiting talent to set up a research and development center in China.

Li Bin, founder and CEO of NIO - a representative domestic rival of Tesla - said at a forum on January 11 that NIO is unlikely to cut prices but will instead offer better services to customers.

After a year of gloomy developments in China's auto industry, Miao said that China will actively guide auto producers to speed up innovation, enhance brand cultivation and shore up their comprehensive ability.