Tesla officially started its high-profile Megafactory project in Shanghai. This was highlighted in a land acquisition and signing ceremony that was held on Friday morning. The ceremony was dubbed by the EV maker as the official start of the “milestone project.”
Similar to its sister factory in Lathrop, California, the Shanghai Megafactory is expected to be capable of producing 10,000 Megapack batteries per year, or about 40 GWh of energy storage. The batteries that will be manufactured in the facility are expected to be sold to the global market.
$TSLA 🇨🇳
BREAKING : Tesla China has officially launched its Shanghai Megapack project.– Tesla China held a land acquisition and signing ceremony in Shanghai on Friday morning.
– Megapack plant will produce a megapac with 40 GWh capacity. Energy Boom! pic.twitter.com/x4H7rX3W3U
— Tsla Chan (@Tslachan) December 22, 2023
The Megapack is Tesla’s flagship battery storage system. Designed specifically for grid-scale projects, the Megapack has been deployed in several key initiatives, including the 182 MW/730 MWh battery farm in Moss Landing, California, and the 150 MW/300 MWh system in New South Wales, Australia. It is offered in two variants: a 2-hour version that offers 1.9 MW of power and 3.9 MWh of energy and a 4-hour variant that features 1 MW of power and 3.9 MWh of energy.
The Shanghai Megafactory was initially expected to start its construction in the third quarter of 2023, with production starting in Q2 2024, as per a previous announcement from the Lingang Special Area Administration back in April. Considering that the project just held its signing ceremony, however it would appear that the Shanghai Megafactory has been slightly delayed. It would not be surprising if Megapack production starts in the latter half of 2024.
The upcoming factory will be located in the Lingang area, which is also in the same vicinity as Tesla’s existing Gigafactory Shanghai. Gigafactory Shanghai currently stands as Tesla’s highest production facility, with the company noting in its Q3 2024 Update Letter that the facility has an estimated annual output of over 950,000 vehicles.
Local media outlets have noted that the Shanghai Megafactory will initially source its batteries from CATL, though the facility may also shift to Tesla’s own batteries down the road.
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