Tesla sees deliveries surge at Shanghai plant

Tesla's Shanghai plant is estimated to have delivered 72,000 vehicles in October, said the China Passenger Car Association on Thursday.

They brought the plant's deliveries in the first 10 months this year to exceed 771,000 units, more than the total in the whole year of 2022, said the CPCA.

Because of the growing demand, the production capacity of its Shanghai plant rose to 950,000 units in the third quarter from 750,000 units in the second quarter, said the carmaker.

The Shanghai plant produces Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, which are well received in the market.

The carmaker said deliveries of the new Model 3 have just started in China and overseas markets, with many of them on the way to destination countries.

California Governor Gavin Newsom visited the facility during his trip to China last week and test drove the new Model 3.

The Shanghai plant is Tesla's first car-producing facility outside of the United States, and Tesla is the first carmaker to have a wholly-owned manufacturing facility in China.

NEVs have become a serious choice for car buyers in China. In September, their sales in the country grew 27.7 percent year-on-year to 904,000 units, accounting for over 31 percent of total vehicle sales, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

In the first nine months of the year, NEV sales increased 37.5 percent from a year ago to 6.28 million units, said the CAAM, which estimated that their total deliveries would hit 9 million units this year.