Tesla Australia and New Zealand recently celebrated having 100,000 units on the road. Tesla Executive Rohan Patel joined the celebration, dropping some facts about the company’s presence in Australia and New Zealand.
“This is just the start for Tesla [Australia and New Zealand],” Patel commented.
“Australia and New Zealand are primed to be big winners in so many ways from electrifying everything. Big markets in battery storage, residential solar, electric vehicles, and the minerals powering the sustainable energy transition— ~80% of our lithium is from Australia,” he added.
Tesla’s hold Down Under was evident last month after the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) released the company’s sales data for February 2024. According to the data, the Tesla Model 3 Highland was Australia’s third best-selling model in February, with 3,593 units sold. The Model Y wasn’t too far behind, selling 2,072 units.
Speaking of the Tesla Model Y, it was the best-selling car in New Zealand in September 2023. The Model Y beat out the Toyota RAV4 in passenger car and outright registration honers that month. It also edged out the Ford Ranger.
This is just the start for @TeslaAUNZ. Australia and NZ are primed to be big winners in so many ways from electrifying everything. Big markets in battery storage, residential solar, electric vehicles and the minerals powering the sustainable energy transition – ~80% of our… https://t.co/GHLMTFGPdw
— Rohan Patel (@rohanspatel) March 28, 2024
Besides car sales, Tesla is also making strides in solar and energy storage system sales in Australia and New Zealand. Australia in particular is home to some of Tesla’s biggest batteries, including the original Big Battery, the Hornsdale Battery.
Australia is a critical country for Tesla because of its lithium supply. In 2022, Tesla Chair Robyn Denholm commented that Australia is a lithium powerhouse.
“Australia has the minerals—not just lithium—and also the know-how and many of the skills to capture the opportunity of this new energy era,” said Denholm.
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