Chinese media reported earlier today that Tesla's Grace Tao said that Giga Shanghai will be able to reach its annual production goal of 500,000 units this year.
Numerous Chinese media outlets reported earlier today that Grace Tao, Tesla's global vice president, said that Tesla Giga Shanghai would be able to reach its annual production goal of 500,000 units this year. However, the company later said the reports were inaccurate.
The reports did not specify where Tao revealed the information, saying only that it came from her words in an interview.
According to Reuters, the Chinese think tank EV100 was the original source of the report, in which Tao also said Tesla China had localized more than 90 percent of its supply chain.
Reuters quoted a Tesla representative as saying that the data on Giga Shanghai's capacity was inaccurate and did not go into further detail, but referred to its third-quarter results that said the Shanghai plant's potential annual output exceeded 450,000.
EV100 also removed the figure in an article they posted to their WeChat account, but retained the statement that Tesla China has localized more than 90 percent of its supply chain, Reuters noted.
The EV100 think tank organizes an annual forum where auto industry executives meet to discuss policies and the market, Reuters noted.
When viewed by CnEVPost, the EV100 article shows that Tao mentioned this when she visited EV100's offices on November 29.
Tao spoke with EV100's team to address key industry development issues, saying Tesla has played a positive role in driving the growth of local parts companies, according to the article.
It's worth noting that the 90 percent figure can be expected.
Yuan Guohua, Chairman of Lingang Group, was quoted by the official Xinhua in late August as saying that Tesla Giga Shanghai will have about 90 percent of its components supplied by local suppliers by the end of the year.
Tesla Giga Shanghai is expected to reach 450,000 units in annual production in 2021, with cumulative exports of about 66,100 units, which will drive the new energy vehicle industry chain in Lingang, Yuan said at the time.
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