Tesla to Build New Megapack Factory in Shanghai
Tesla has announced plans to construct a new factory in Shanghai dedicated to producing its Megapack battery storage products. The move is designed to increase production capacity for grid-scale energy solutions and strengthen the company's supply chain in Asia. Shanghai's port access and skilled labor were key factors in the site selection.
The new facility is Tesla's first energy storage factory outside the United States and is located in Shanghai's Lin-gang Special Area, which is also home to its Gigafactory for electric vehicles. The project represents a total investment of about 1.45 billion yuan (roughly $200 million). Construction of the 200,000-square-meter plant was completed in just seven months, with groundbreaking in May 2024 and trial production starting by the end of that year. Mass production is slated to begin in the first quarter of 2025. The factory is designed to produce 10,000 Megapack units annually, equivalent to nearly 40 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of energy storage. This production capacity mirrors that of Tesla's existing Megapack factory in Lathrop, California. Each Megapack unit can store over 3.9 megawatt-hours of energy, enough to power approximately 3,600 homes for one hour. The first customer for the Shanghai-made Megapacks is the Shanghai Lingang Economic Development Group. The first batch of Megapacks produced at the Shanghai factory was shipped for export in March of the inaugural year of production, with the 1,000th unit rolling off the line less than six months after production began. These initial exports were sent to customers in Australia and Europe. Battery giant CATL, a primary supplier for Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory, is also expected to provide battery components for the Megapacks. Additionally, Tesla has partnered with BYD's battery unit, FinDreams, to supply cells for the new factory.
