Tesla is looking at a potential “significant investment” in France, likely in the form of a factory, following CEO Elon Musk meeting with President Emanuel Macron.
Musk flew to Paris to meet with Macron today, and the goal of the meeting was reportedly to discuss the potential of Tesla investing in France.
The automaker had previously considered France for its first major car factory in Europe, but it ended up building in Germany instead. Tesla has recently ramped up production at Gigafactory Berlin to 5,000 units per week, but the automaker still has room to grow at the factory.
However, the company is looking to ramp up its global annual production capacity from 2 million units to 20 million units by the end of the decade. In order to achieve that, it will need to build several more Gigafactories. Therefore, even though it still has room to grow in Berlin, Tesla will likely need to secure a deal for an additional factory in Europe.
It looks like France wants to throw its hat in the ring. Following the meeting with Macron, Musk told local media that he is hopeful that Tesla would make a “significant investment” in France in the future.
The CEO was also supposed to meet with French finance minister Bruno Le Maire to discuss the possibility of Tesla taking advantage of tax credits for new investments in green technologies in the country.
Electrek’s Take
I expect Tesla to announce locations for two new Gigafactories within the next 12 months; I am not sure how seriously Tesla is considering France, but another factory in Europe would make sense.
Poland has been rumored before, but I think it’s likely that France and the UK are going to be top prospects.