Hyundai’s $7.6 billion Georgia plant dodged U.S. President Donald Trump’s recently announced tariffs on imported vehicles and auto parts.

The South Korean automaker’s Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA) in Georgia celebrated its opening recently by announcing plans to expand the factory. Hyundai aims to boost production by two-thirds, increasing HMGMA’s capacity from 300,000 to 500,000 vehicles annually.

“This plant couldn’t come at a better time than now. Because definitely all the cars that we would produce here are going to be exempted from any tariffs,” said Hyundai Motor Company CEO Jose Munoz.

President Donald Trump recently announced 25% tariffs on auto imports at the White House. President Trump praised the HMGMA plan in Georgia, commenting it was a “clear demonstration that tariffs very strongly work.”

According to the Associated Press, the Georgia expansion ties into $21 billion in U.S. investments. It includes a $5.8 billion steel mill in Louisiana, which will supply parts for Georgia and Alabama plants.

Hyundai aims to employ 8,500 workers at the Bryan County site. Battery partners are estimated to add 3,500 more jobs. The car company does not have worker estimates for HMGMA’s expansion plans.

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chairman Euisun Chung said the legacy automaker came to Georgia “to stay, to invest and to grow.”

“Standing here today, I can say I have never been more confident about building the future of mobility with America, in America,” Chung said.

Hyundai started EV production in Georgia six months ago. As of this writing, over 1,200 workers run the massive plant. Hyundai’s Georgia factory builds two electric SUVs now. The IONIQ 5 is already in production. Hyundai will start producing the IONIQ 9 this spring. Hyundai plans to produce hybrids, too. Munoz predicted hybrids would eventually make up one-third of production.

A few days ago, Tesla announced that the first Megapack battery units from its Shanghai “Megafactory” were being shipped to Australia.

As per recent reports, the massive grid-scale Tesla batteries are bound for Queensland’s Western Downs battery project.

The Shanghai Megafactory

The Shanghai Megafactory is Tesla’s first battery storage factory outside the United States. Built close to Gigafactory Shanghai, the Shanghai Megafactory is expected to supply Megapack batteries to both China and foreign markets.

The Megapack represents a huge portion of Tesla Energy’s deployments. With 3.9 MWh of energy, Tesla notes that each Megapack is enough to power 3,600 homes for an hour. The Shanghai Megafactory has a capacity to produce 10,000 Megapacks per year to start. 

Mike Snyder, vice president of Tesla, shared his optimism about the Shanghai Megafactory. “Megafactory gives us the ability to scale production and efficiency. We can lower logistics costs as well as product costs, and grow the business to new markets,” he stated.

Australia Battery Projects

As noted in a report from Renew Economy, the first Megapack shipments from the Shanghai Megafactory will be installed in the second stage of the Western Downs battery project, which is being built by Neoen. The Western Downs battery project involves a 460 MWp solar farm coupled with a 540 MW/1,080 MWh big battery system.

Tesla has also been listed as the battery supplier for the upcoming Calala battery in Tamworth, New South Wales, which will involve 138 Megapack units. The Megapacks for the Calala battery will likely be imported from the Shanghai Megafactory as well.

Data from Rosetta Analytics suggests that Tesla is currently the dominant player in Australia’s energy storage segment, with the company holding over 30% of the market. Tesla has become a notable presence in Australia’s energy sector for years, especially following the company’s buildout of the Hornsdale “big battery,” which was initially comprised of Tesla Powerpacks, in 2017.

Tesla Sentry Mode caught a suspect hitting Tesla cars with an ATV. A Texarkana man sits in jail after allegedly damaging Tesla vehicles with an ATV on Tuesday, March 25.

The Texarkana Texas Police Department (TTPD) arrested 33-year-old Demarqeyun Cox for reportedly damaging three Tesla vehicles. He faces charges of criminal mischief and failure to identify. According to police, surveillance cameras on the first Tesla damaged revealed Cox using a small ATV to smash into it. The suspect allegedly hit two other Teslas as well.

Tesla Sentry Mode played a big role in providing footage for the police and nabbing the suspect. With Tesla attacks on the rise, Sentry Mode will likely become a more useful feature to owners.

Police received two reports of a suspect damaging Teslas. The first report came from Golden Palace on Summerhill Road, where police retrieved footage from a Tesla vehicle, showing a man on a mini four-wheeler ramming it at full speed. After the first report, officers started searching for the suspect. Then another call reported a damaged Tesla at Lowe’s parking lot.

An officer soon spotted Cox on a mini four-wheeler near Summerhill and New Boston Roads. He matched the man in the video from the Tesla vehicle. Cox gave a fake name at first. However, police were able to correctly identify him and took him into custody.

“In the initial incident, he rammed the car with the four-wheeler, and [in] the two subsequent incidents, he actually used some kind of tool to scratch the word ‘Elon’ into the paint of the vehicles there. He has not told us what his motivation was in doing that is or was,” Shawn Vaughn with TTPD told KSLA local news.

Tesla attacks have grown rampant across the United States as Elon Musk continues to be a divisive figure. People who disagree with Musk’s politics have started vandalizing Tesla vehicles, stores, and Superchargers across the country.

The FBI has created a task force to crack down on the Tesla attacks and labeled them a form of “domestic terrorism.” As of this writing, the Tesla attacks have not resulted in injuries or fatalities.