Tesla plans to build megafactory in Shanghai

Tesla, the world’s biggest electric vehicle manufacturer, will build a new megafactory in Shanghai as it looks to cater to growing demand for battery production, according to a report by Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

The factory will be dedicated to manufacturing the company’s energy storage product Megapack and will complement a huge existing Shanghai plant making electric vehicles, the report on April 9 said.

Tesla is scheduled to break ground on the plant in the third quarter of this year and start production in the second quarter of 2024, Tesla said at a signing ceremony for the project in Shanghai.

The new factory will initially produce 10,000 Megapack units every year, equal to about 40 gigawatt hours of energy storage.

The products will be sold worldwide, the Xinhua report said.

Investment details about the project were not disclosed.

Megapack is a powerful battery that provides energy storage and support, helping to stabilise the grid and prevent power cuts, according to Tesla's website.

Each unit can store more than 3 megawatt hours of energy — that’s enough energy to power an average of 3,600 homes for one hour.

Tesla currently produces its vehicles in Fremont, California; Austin, Texas; Shanghai, China; and Berlin, Germany.