Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) plans to open a design center in Beijing, indicating the region's growing importance for the Elon Musk-led company, Reuters reported on Friday, citing a government document.
What Happened: The design and engineering studio will be based in China’s capital city and is aimed at the manufacturing of China-designed electric vehicles that would be sold globally.
Beijing’s municipal government had in January revealed the development in a report that listed key projects for the city in 2022.
Besides Tesla, a fuel research center for Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp (NYSE:TM) and Xiaomi Corp's planned car plant were also mentioned in the list.
See Also: Tesla Saw 52% Of 2021 Global Deliveries From Giga Shanghai Alone
Why It Matters: China is a key market for Tesla in terms of local appetite for electric cars, which is growing every year.
Tesla’s Giga Shanghai has also been doubling up as an export hub since it started making vehicles locally towards the end of 2019.
Giga Shanghai reportedly accounted for more than half of the electric vehicle maker’s global deliveries in 2021.
Tesla delivered a total of 936,000 electric vehicles last year — of which 484,130 units were made in Giga Shanghai alone, which would be about 52% volume to the company's global deliveries.
Price Action: Tesla shares closed 2.95% lower at $904.5 on Thursday.
