Tesla’s Giga Shanghai has reached a significant milestone in its short history, producing its 1 millionth Model Y this week. What makes this accomplishment so impressive is that it comes a little over two years after the factory first started producing the Model Y. Production of the electric SUV at Giga Shanghai began in late 2020 with the first deliveries taking place in January 2021.
Although Tesla has yet to officially announce the milestone, a photo has been shared on social media showing Giga Shanghai employees celebrating the moment with the 1 millionth Model Y finished in Multi-Coat Red.
Congratulations to Gigashanghai on its millionth Model Y off the production line. pic.twitter.com/yyxMkPmHXE
— Chris Zheng (@ChrisZheng001) July 12, 2023
Giga Shanghai has been a critical piece of Tesla’s growth puzzle over the last few years. The factory started to impress even before it was open, going from a muddy pit to the start of production in less than a year. The rapid pace of advancement didn’t stop there as it quickly became the most productive EV factory in the world, accounting for a significant portion of Tesla’s global sales after it become the automaker’s official export hub.
Even though the factory is less than four years old it has received many upgrades over that time and now has an annualized production rate of over 1 million cars, which include the Model 3 and Model Y.
The last time we got a production update on Giga Shanghai was nearly a year ago in August 2022, when CEO Elon Musk announced the factory had produced its 1 millionth car overall. Musk didn’t break that figure down between Model 3 and Model Y production, but did say that Tesla had produced over 3 million cars overall since its inception.
With four vehicles factories now in operation around the world, Tesla reached over 4 million units produced earlier this year, with the 4 millionth car coming from its newest factory, Giga Texas.