Tesla's Gigafactory in Shanghai File photo:VCG

Responding to some media reports claiming production halt at Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory for the Chinese Spring Festival, Tesla on Wednesday said that its employees will "enjoy two more days off than the national statutory holidays", while some of its workshops will continue to operate at high capacity during the coming holidays.

Online information about the holidays at Tesla's Shanghai factory is "inaccurate," read a statement sent from Tesla to the Global Times on Wednesday.

In fact, most employees at Tesla Shanghai Gigafactory will have a long holiday from January 20 to 28, which means they have two more days off than the scheduled Chinese New Year holiday, which falls from January 21 to 27. 

The holiday plan will give employees flexibility to schedule their going back home for the annual family reunion. Some employees have even spent the past two years in the city and have not been home for the Spring Festival holidays, said Tesla in the statement.

"At the same time, part of the workshops in Shanghai will continue at high-capacity operation during the Spring Festival holiday, and we have made relevant arrangements for the work," said Tesla.

According to some media reports citing internal documents, Tesla's Shanghai plant will produce electric vehicles (EVs) for 17 consecutive days from January 3 to 19, 2023, followed by a suspension of plant production from January 20 to 31, which will extend over the official New Year holidays ranging from January 21 to 27. 

It means that the plant's production reduction plan, which began in December 2022, could be extended to 2023, the media alleged.

The Shanghai Gigafactory is an important production base for Tesla. It is reported that the plant employs about 20,000 workers.

In the first half of 2022, Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory produced nearly 300,000 vehicles, and the half-year shipments has exceeded the full-year delivery in 2021. Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory exported 97,182 vehicles in the first half of 2022, an increase of more than 100 percent over the same period last year.

Tesla also told the Global Times that its 10,000th supercharging pile in the Chinese mainland just landed in Shanghai on Monday. At present, Tesla has built and opened more than 1,500 supercharger stations across the country.

Global Times