Even with the Hong Kong technology forum coming up, Engadget managed to talk to Elon Musk about the developments of Tesla Motors in mainland China.
According to the innovative CEO, his company fares "reasonably well," meaning that the early hiccup in sales from a while ago did not leave any permanent marks. Musk underlined his commitment to manufacturing within China's borders, which he hopes to start as early as this year.
According to the Space X founder, Tesla and its future Chinese associate should settle on a location no later than by the middle of 2016.
One main reason why Musk wants to start building its electrical vehicles in China is to fend off the prohibitive import tax that the local authorities impose. What's more, the Chinese government urges its citizens to go full electric, as China's megalopolises are famed for their high pollution.
Musk assured Engadget that once the negotiations advance, he will share the details with the media.
The American automaker sprouted no less than 15 stores in seven of Greater China's major cities, more than 340 Superchargers and north of 1,600 destination chargers.
Hong Kong is the pack leader, with 42 Superchargers. The city has the highest concentration of rapid charging stations built by Tesla, which join the 75 destination chargers already in place there. With such an extended network of places to fill up the Tesla cars, it comes as no surprise that 2,221 Model Ss were sold in Hong Kong last year. That means that the number of vehicles that Tesla sold in Hong Kong in 2015 equals 80 percent of the total number of electric vehicles from the area.
Hong Kong also witnessed a trend that should give Musk a breath of hope. The number of registered electrical vehicles surged between 2014 and 2015 as much as 270 percent.
Musk noted that "excellent government policies" are behind the increased interest in electrical vehicles, and wishes to see the same level of environmental enthusiasm in mainland China as well.
The Tesla Motors' leader confirmed that the Model X will reach Hong Kong in 2H 2016. The citizens of Hong Kong will also get an additional "present" from Musk's company in form of a new service center.
In 2014, the Chinese customers purchased nearly 20 million cars, making it the no.1 country in terms of car-imports. Furthermore, China works on incentives and legislation to increase its number of low emissions cars. This could prove highly beneficial to the likes of Tesla, which relies on the environmental impact just as much as on high-end technology to sell its products.
The Chinese government had a target of 500,000 electric cars by the end of 2015, and as high as five million by the end of the decade. With the help of incentives and the upcoming Tesla factory located in mainland China, the number looks feasible.
For the tech-savvy and environmentally-friendly drivers of China, a Tesla car does not come cheap. Its base price is somewhere over $100,000, whereas the same vehicle costs about $70,000 in the United States.
