Tesla Increases Production To 2,600 Cars Per Day Starting Mid-May

Tesla Illustration (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - Tesla Inc aims to increase production at its Shanghai factory to 2,600 cars per day starting May 16.

Quoted from Antara, Saturday, May 7, this production increase was carried out in an effort to restore production to levels before the city went into lockdown in order to control COVID-19.

Tesla, which is now running just one shit, plans to add more production at its Shanghai plant starting May 16. That would bring weekly production to 16,900 vehicles based on Tesla's assigned workweek at the facility, according to Reuters calculations.

It would also indicate a return to production levels at factories before the Shanghai lockdown in late March, which forced companies to suspend work there. Tesla declined to provide immediate comment.

Prior to the lockdown, Tesla had run three shifts at the Shanghai plant. The factory, which makes Tesla's Model 3 and Model Y, reopened on April 19 after a 22-day shutdown, the longest since the site opened in late 2019.

The Shanghai lockdown has also been a challenge for Tesla and other manufacturers because of the complexity of getting parts from suppliers.

The disruption at Tesla's Shanghai plant has been one of the highest-profile consequences of China's actions to contain its biggest COVID-19 outbreak, which has also reduced consumption, including vehicle sales.

Sales of electric vehicles had exploded in China before the COVID lockdown. Tesla's sales in China jumped 56 percent in the first quarter, while sales of electric vehicles by its bigger Chinese rival, BYD, increased fivefold.

Tesla assembled 55,462 vehicles in March at its Shanghai plant when it halted production for six days a month, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association.