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Tesla’s Shanghai factory delivers fewer electric cars as upgrade ahead of new Model 3 launch disrupts production
- The Gigafactory in Shanghai delivered 12 per cent fewer cars in September, bucking the market trend
- An upgrade as the US giant prepares to launch its hotly anticipated new Model 3 is likely to explain the decline
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Daniel Renin Shanghai
Tesla’s Gigafactory in Shanghai delivered 12 per cent fewer vehicles in September as the electric-car maker upgraded its mainland China plant ahead of the launch of a revamped Model 3.
The drop in deliveries bucked the upward trend in the world’s largest electric vehicle (EV) market, where one in every three new cars taking to the streets are now powered by batteries amid soaring sales.
“The upgrade of the factory must have disrupted production, hence the decline,” said Phate Zhang, founder of CnEVPost, a Shanghai-based electric-vehicle data provider. “With the delivery of the upgraded Model 3 vehicles, Tesla is likely to see an increase in its sales on the mainland.”
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The Gigafactory 3 in Shanghai’s Lingang free-trade zone delivered 74,073 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles in total last month, including exports, down from 84,159 units in August, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
That number represented a 10.9 per cent decline from the same period a year ago.
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The Shanghai-based Cailian news agency reported that more than 30,000 Shanghai-made Model 3 and Model Y cars were exported last month, which translated into sales of about 44,000 units on the mainland – a 32 per cent plunge from August.
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