Tesla will be extending the production line of Gigafactory 3 in Shanghai in the wake of valiant efforts by local authorities to reopen the factory due to COVID-19 shutdowns.
According to Reuters, a letter was sent by Tesla to local authorities in Shanghai on May 1st, thanking them for their help in getting the factory back up and running.
“They fought for three consecutive days, working round the clock and non-stop to guarantee our company’s workers could return to the factory,” the letter said.
Authorities in Shanghai’s Lingang Special Area arranged for the transport of over 6,000 workers and the brand’s suppliers to the factory and performed disinfecting work in order for Tesla to enter “closed-loop” production.
Giga Shanghai was shut down on April 19th and stayed closed for 22 days, the longest shutdown since it was opened in late 2019. The shutdown was due to COVID outbreaks in Shanghai, for which the city has a zero-tolerance policy, and is doing everything it can to stop the virus from spreading any further.
Read More: GM, Tesla, And Industry Suppliers Affected By Latest COVID Lockdown In Shanghai
The shutdown caused production to be set back by nearly 50,000 vehicles, and the letter shows how important Shanghai is to Elon Musk’s car company.
The support is also in stark contrast to events that occurred last year when the company came under fire for data security and product quality issues.
Additionally, the letter outlined the brand’s plans to become “the world’s largest vehicle export hub“, which includes adding a new production line that will open up on land near the Gigafactory and facilitate the production of 450,000 more vehicles annually.
The Model 3 and Model Y for the German and Japanese markets are built in Shanghai, and in 2021, the Shanghai plant built 484,100 vehicles, meaning the additional production line could effectively double the number of vehicles produced annually.
