Tesla CEO Elon Musk Optimistic About Shanghai Gigafactory 3’s ‘Rapid Progress’

There is a reason for Tesla CEO Elon Musk to be elated with the Supercharger network being set up over in Shanghai, China. The company has broken ground at the Gigafactory 3 site, transitioning to a waiting game that Musk thinks can be achieved in record time.

Speaking with a Chinese media outlet, Musk expressed optimism on the rapid completion of the Gigafactory 3 over in Shanghai, China. And if all falls into place, he foresees the first fleet of vehicles coming out in two years. And while some may deem this ambitious, it may just come to fruition.

“I’ve been very impressed with the construction in Shanghai. It’s very efficient, it’s very fast and high quality… And I first saw that when we were building the Tesla supercharger network. We were able to build this amazing supercharger, quite a big supercharger, in downtown Shanghai in like 12 days. It was amazing. It was like the fastest we’d ever built anything in the world,” said Musk in an interview with KNews.

And while Musk is upbeat at the progress of the construction of the Supercharger network, there are other factors he may have left out. This includes the process of securing permits and the people who will be working at the local factory. One thing working for Musk and his projection is that China is embracing their presence in the country, one that could very well align with his seemingly ambitious outlook, Teslarati.com reported.

Tesla's popularity in Shanghai is without question. However, there are other local companies that Musk may have to factor in as far as planning. As mentioned in another post, this includes local car manufacturers like Nio, BYD Auto, the BAIC group and the country's own Shanghai Automotive Industries Corp.

Looking ahead, the new Tesla factory is predicted to commence production by the second half of 2019. Musk already lit a fire when he revealed via his Twitter account that the Chinese factory would offer an affordable version of the Model 3 and Model Y. He sees production picking up the pace by 2020.

“I kind of was expecting rapid progress because I know how quickly things can be built in Shanghai,” said Musk. Watch his video interview below.