Tesla announced on Monday that the China rollout of the Model Y crossover has commenced and simultaneous deliveries have been made in 10 Chinese cities beginning in Shanghai, where the electric SUVs have been assembled. It is the second EV that the automaker introduced in the country following the Model 3's release in January 2020.
The Tesla sedan proved an instant hit in the Chinese market with a total buy so far of 138,000 units. The company is looking to surpass the Model 3's record banking on the rising popularity of crossover and electrified cars in China, now deemed as the most lucrative EV market in the world.
The Model Y is predicted to top the EV charts in China and mainly thanks to the business model that Tesla is employing in expanding its presence in the country, currently the world's second-largest economy. Company chief Elon Musk said Tesla EVs will be priced competitively for the Chinese market as all units to be sold in the country will be assembled locally.
"Manufacturing cars locally helps the Palo Alto, California-based electric vehicle maker save on shipping costs and avoid import duties for the Chinese market," reported The Wall Street Journal.
Tesla's push in China is deemed critical to the company's future ambitions. The EV maker saw its total deliveries last year nearly reaching the 500,000 level and for 2021, Musk is targeting to double the volume with the bulk of the assembled units to be supplied by the Giga Shanghai factory in China.
The long-term goal set by Musk is for Tesla to increase its output every year. By the next decade, the Tesla boss is envisioning a yearly production capability of 20 million units.
This mark will be breached with a significant contribution coming from the Gigafactory in Shanghai and similar gargantuan manufacturing facilities that are approaching completion in Berlin and Texas, according to CNBC.
Having a play in China will be the fuel that will fire up Tesla, already the most valuable automaker on the planet, to unprecedented growth heights, added the same report.
This should explain why the company is heavily invested in the country and very much attuned to preserve its dominance of the EV market segment. The Model Y push, for instance, showed that Tesla is now letting its guards down by deploying the electric crossover to 10 different locations at the same time.
As Electrek noted in a related report, the Model Y deliveries for China are being carried out in "a big way." Not only that the EVs are being shipped out to as many locations as possible, but Tesla is also making it easier for Chinese buyers to own the SUV with discounted pricing and government incentives.
Also, part of the Tesla service is to send out the Model Y fully disinfected that adds to the convenience of purchasing and using the electric SUV.
