Tesla announces Gigafactory 3 is already producing ‘more than 1,000 Model 3/week’

Tesla executives have confirmed that Gigafactory 3 has already achieved its goal of producing “more than 1,000” Model 3 vehicles per week.

Over the last few weeks, we have observed Tesla steadily producing and shipping made-in-China Model 3 vehicles out of Gigafactory 3 while it was awaiting sale approval for the new vehicle.

Yesterday, they officially started deliveries and we recently witnessed Model 3 vehicles overflowing Gigafactory 3’s parking lot.

After the ceremony to deliver the first few cars, Tesla China executives talked to the Chinese press and confirmed some important details about the current production capacity of Gigafactory 3 and the status of the made-in China Model 3..

Wang Hao, general manager of Tesla China, said that Tesla expects to sell all Model 3 vehicles that were already produced:

“Demand for the made-in-China Tesla Model 3s has been very hot. We have a goal of selling every Model 3 that we produce in the Shanghai plant, and we are very confident of achieving that goal,”

A production director told Global Times China that production is already exceeding 1,000 Model 3 cars per week:

“Song Gang, production director of the Tesla Gigafactory 3, said that the factory produces 28 or more Model 3s every hour and works about 10 hours each day, which means that it produces more than 1,000 cars each week. He added that the factory will be able to produce 3,000 cars per week “in the near future.””

Tao Lin, vice president of Tesla, announced that the Shanghai plant’s production capacity will be further enhanced in 2020:

“Compared with traditional car manufacturers, Gigafactory 3’s production capacity will ramp up at a speed that exceeds your imagination,”

The increase in capacity is not only about the total output of Model 3 vehicles, which is expected to quickly reach 3,000 per week, but it’s also about manufacturing more parts locally.

Tesla’s Chinese execs told the Global Times that currently about 30 percents of the parts are sourced in China:

“The Tesla executives also disclosed that about 30 percent of the made-in-China Model 3 parts are sourced in China. The Model 3’s localization level will climb to about 80 percent by around mid-2020 and the car will be totally localized by the end of next year, meaning that all of its parts will be supplied by Chinese companies.”

A previous report stated that Tesla is considering significantly reducing the price of the vehicle in China after the cost is reduced from sourcing the majority of the parts in the country.