On the afternoon of May 23rd, Tesla's Shanghai Energy Storage Super Factory, located in the Lingang New Area of Shanghai, officially started construction. It is expected to be put into operation in the first quarter of 2025. After operation, the production of Megapack, a super large electrochemical commercial energy storage system, will reach 10000 units, with a storage capacity of nearly 40 gigawatt hours.
Blue Whale News noticed that Zhu Xiaotong, who was revealed earlier this month to be returning to the Chinese market, also appeared at the groundbreaking ceremony. In the official press release, his latest identity is Senior Vice President of Tesla.
According to public information, Zhu Xiaotong was promoted to Senior Vice President of Tesla's Automotive Business in April 2023, based in Austin, Texas, USA. He is responsible for overseeing Tesla's global production, sales, delivery, services, and company factories.
According to a regulatory document submitted by Tesla to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) at that time, Tom Zhu has been serving as the Senior Vice President of the company's automotive business since April 2023. This is also the first time that Zhu Xiaotong's name has appeared on Tesla's senior management list, and thus became one of Tesla's top four global executives at that time.
Before Zhu Xiaotong, Tesla listed three senior management positions, namely CEO Elon Musk CFO Zachary Kirkhorn and Senior Vice President of Powertrain and Energy Engineering Andrew Baglino.
However, Zack Cockhorn and Bagrino have both resigned. According to Tesla's official website, Zhu Xiaotong is still listed as one of the top three executives, along with Musk and CFO Vaibhav Taneja.
According to Phoenix Technology, after Zhu Xiaotong was promoted to the senior management team of Tesla last year, due to Musk's busy operation of other companies and the reorganization of the newly acquired Twitter, Zhu Xiaotong's power further expanded and he took charge of Tesla's North American sales, becoming the actual person in charge of Tesla's automotive business, second only to Musk's "number two figure", and even considered Musk's successor. But the report cites sources familiar with the matter, stating that in recent months, Musk has taken over North American car sales from Zhu Xiaotong, who is no longer responsible for North American business.
On the 7th of this month, the news of Zhu Xiaotong's return to the Chinese business and re assuming the position of Vice President began to spread widely. External speculation suggests that Zhu Xiaotong's return may have two implications: first, there are signs that Musk has further tightened his personal control over Tesla, and second, it may encourage Zhu Xiaotong, who is familiar with the Chinese market, to fully promote Tesla's Full Self Driving (FSD) landing in China.
On April 28th, Musk made a lightning visit to China. On the same day, Tesla passed the authoritative standards and requirements for national vehicle data security. Musk's arrival at that time sparked discussions and speculations about Tesla FSD's entry into China from the outside world. It is reported that Zhu Xiaotong accompanied Musk throughout his visit to China.
Zhu Xiaotong has led the layout of Tesla's super charging stations in China and the production of the Shanghai super factory, possessing rich experience and strategic skills. In the industry's view, his return, coupled with the safety "green card" in hand, The path of FSD entering China may be further accelerated.
Regarding the news of Zhu Xiaotong's return to the Chinese market, Blue Whale News also sent a confirmation letter to Tesla on May 23, but as of the time of publication, no response has been received.
Of course, after a year, Zhu Xiaotong was exposed to have returned to the Chinese market, and the underlying significance is unknown to the outside world. For Tesla China at present, it is in a critical stage of adjustment.
Musk previously stated in an internal letter to employees that Tesla will lay off 10% of its workforce globally. At that time, he said, "There is nothing that I dislike more than layoffs, but I must do so." This global layoff has also affected the Chinese market, and some departments have even been reported to have laid off 50%.
Behind the layoff controversy, Tesla's performance in the Chinese market is showing signs of slowing or even declining. According to data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, Tesla's wholesale sales in China in April this year were about 62200 vehicles, a decrease of 18% from about 75800 vehicles in the same period last year, and a month on month decline of over 30%.
However, in addition to its existing electric vehicle business, the Tesla Shanghai Energy Storage Super Factory, which has started construction this time, may become a new growth point for Tesla's performance. "For many years, I have predicted that the growth rate of the energy storage business will be much faster than that of the electric vehicle business. It is being realized," Musk said during the 2023 fourth quarter financial report conference call
According to Bloomberg's prediction, the global market demand for energy storage batteries will reach 1000 gigawatt hours by 2030, with a market size of 1.2 trillion US dollars. Regarding this, Tesla stated that with the start of the Shanghai Energy Storage Super Factory, it indicates that Tesla's layout improvement and integrated innovation in multiple areas of "electric vehicles, energy storage, and artificial intelligence" will enter the next stage.