Tesla's vehicles wait to be exported at Nangang Port in Shanghai on September 28, 2024. Photo: courtesy of Tesla

US electric vehicle maker Tesla announced on Saturday that it has shipped its 1 millionth made-in-China vehicle from its Shanghai plant. Experts say the milestone reflects China's strong and complete industrial supply chains. 

A batch of Tesla Model 3 vehicles was shipped from Shanghai's Nangang Port to Britain on Saturday, marking the milestone of 1 million China-made Tesla vehicles have been exported in less than four years, the Global Times learned from the company.

"Today, the one-millionth exported China-made Tesla car sets sail from Shanghai's Nangang Port. In just four years since the first batch of vehicles was exported, Tesla cars made in China have been sold in Europe, Asia-Pacific, Australia, and New Zealand, earning high recognition in overseas markets," Tao Lin, Tesla's vice president, wrote on Weibo.

The speed of Tesla's production shows the high quality and efficiency of China's manufacturing capabilities to produce products that are in high demand internationally. 

Tesla said that its Shanghai Gigafactory is a key global export hub and production base, playing a vital role in China's manufacturing sector. An entire new vehicle rolls off the assembly line at around every 30 seconds.

On January 7, 2019, Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory broke ground in the Lingang New Area, and on December 30 that same year, the first batch of vehicles was delivered. From groundbreaking to delivery, Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory took less than one year, Xinhua News Agency reported at that time.

Tesla's Shanghai Megapack energy storage plant in the Lingang New Area is also progressing rapidly. 

By the end of September 2024, the construction of the main factory building has been completed by over 60 percent, with plans in place to officially commence production in the first quarter of 2025, Tesla told the Global Times on Saturday in a statement. 

The gigafactory plans to produce 10,000 Megapacks annually, with a total storage capacity of nearly 40 GWh. The new factory aims to supply the global market and further establish Chinese intelligent manufacturing as a prominent brand on the international stage, Tesla said.

Global Times