Tesla plans to build third-generation superchargers in China even as Tesla Model 3 now costs $7 per 100km compared with $12 for a rival gasoline car

At the beginning of this year, the Tesla Model 3 only accounted for about six percent of the electric vehicle sales market in China. Just about seven months later, the Tesla Model 3 was the most registered new electric car in China with over 11 thousand vehicles sold as of July 2020, according to the research site Statista. Tesla is doing everything possible to position itself as the number one Chinese electric car company and boost sales in the world’s biggest car market.

Last week, Tesla announced it planned to start making its third-generation electric Superchargers in China, in addition to vehicles it already manufactures there. The world’s largest electric vehicle company said it’ll start producing the chargers in 2021, according to a report from Reuters. As part of the plan, Tesla will invest $6.4 million in a new factory to help make its third-generation of chargers, called the Supercharger V3.

Even as Tesla continues to build supercharging stations around the world, Tesla electric cars are now more expensive to recharge than it is to fuel an equivalent gasoline-powered car, at least if you’re using the Tesla Supercharger network, according to WhichCar, an Australian electric car news site. WhichCar noted that the cost of charging a Tesla Model 3 is $7 per 100km compared with $12 for a rival gasoline car, citing data from Tesla’s own website.

Meanwhile, the new supercharger factory, which will be near Tesla’s car plant in Shanghai, will have the capacity to make 10,000 chargers a year, Tesla said. Tesla expects to complete the factory in the first quarter of 2021. China currently offers hefty subsidies and incentives for electric vehicles as the world’s most populous country seeks to cut down on pollution from petrol or diesel cars.  China has been expanding its nationwide network of charging points, one of the biggest challenges to encouraging the adoption of EVs.

Currently, China imports its electric vehicle chargers from the United States. The Tesla Shanghai car factory is expected to produce 150,000 Model 3 sedans this year and has started exporting some vehicles to Europe. Late last year, we wrote about Tesla after the company secured $1.29 billion loan financing from Chinese banks for its Shanghai factory. That new loan will be partially used to roll over the previous 3.5 billion yuan debt, according to the first source. The second source said the rest will be used on the factory and Tesla’s China operations.