Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has won approval to begin production in China, the first fully foreign-owned car factory in the country and Tesla’s first base overseas.
The move will help Elon Musk's electric vehicle maker to avoid higher tariffs placed on American cars, as well as reach its goal output of 500,000 vehicles globally in the year ending in 2020.
Tesla, which has previously said it expects the US$2bn ‘Gigafactory’ in Shanghai to produce 150,000 units per year, was on Thursday added to a list of approved automotive manufacturers published by China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
Reports suggest that the car manufacturer hopes to begin production at the factory this month.
Tesla stock was up 1% to US$261.5 in pre-market trading.