Tesla will ramp up production at its factory in Shanghai, China this week to levels not seen since the country recently enforced COVID-19 lockdowns.
An internal memo from the car manufacturer has revealed that it will more than double its daily output at the plant to 2,600 EVs from Tuesday, a significant jump from the 1,000 vehicles that were built on Monday.
Tesla has been eager to boost its Shanghai production numbers ever since it was forced to close the facility for 22 days. The automaker had hoped to return to pre-lockdown production levels by May 16 but had to push back this target. It was only allowed to resume production on April 19 under a ‘closed-loop’ system that requires workers to be isolated to avoid spreading COVID-19.
Read Also: Tesla Slows Down Shanghai Production Over Parts Shortages Just As It Reopened Plant
Elon Musk’s company has also been dealing with shipping obstacles, limited supplies of important parts such as wiring harnesses, and has encountered staff shortages.
Tesla’s Shanghai factory had been operating three shifts before the lockdowns. The company only managed to sell 1,512 vehicles through China in April, a dramatic decrease from the 65,754 that it sold in March, Reuters notes.
Production at the site had resumed in part due to Tesla receiving assistance from local authorities. As we reported earlier this month, authorities in Shanghai’s Lingang Special Area arranged transport for 6,000 workers and performed disinfecting work to allow the company to enter the ‘closed-loop’ system. The shutdown at the site set back Tesla production by almost 50,000 vehicles.
