Tesla China’s export efforts for the third quarter appear to be ramping up. This was hinted at in drone flyovers of the Shanghai Port, as well as the trend in the country’s domestic vehicle insurance registrations.
Tesla China does not post its weekly sales figures, but the general trend of the company’s vehicle sales per week can be inferred through insurance registrations across the country. Fortunately, these insurance registrations are tracked by industry watchers and automakers like Li Auto in China, and they are posted regularly.
And as per industry watchers, Tesla China sold 7,700 vehicles domestically in the week ending July 23. That’s down 23% from the 10,000 vehicles that were sold in China in the week ending July 16. With the company’s recent domestic estimates, Tesla’s local sales in China are currently estimated at 20,700 vehicles.
While Tesla China only saw 7,700 vehicle registrations in the third week of July, and while these numbers represent a 23% drop from the second week’s figures, they are still notably better than the 3,200 registrations that were reported in the week ending July 9.
Tesla China produces the Model 3 sedan and Model Y crossover at Gigafactory Shanghai. And while both vehicles are sold in the country, the facility also operates as the company’s primary vehicle export hub. With this in mind, Gigafactory Shanghai typically allots its resources for exports during the first half of a quarter.
These exports were hinted at heavily in a recent drone flyover of the Shanghai Port. As per footage from drone operator and longtime Tesla China watcher Jason Yang, the Shanghai Port is being filled with the company’s electric cars. This suggests that, for now, at least, Gigafactory Shanghai is indeed focusing its resources on vehicle exports.
Watch a recent drone flyover of the Gigafactory Shanghai complex and the Shanghai Port in the video below.
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