US electric vehicle giant Tesla announced on April 18 that it will start construction of its new Megafactory in East China's Shanghai in the following month.

An aerial view of Tesla's Shanghai Megafactory. [Photo/Shanghai Observer]

The factory is specifically designed for manufacturing Tesla's commercial Megapack battery energy storage units and aims to begin mass production by the first quarter of next year.

This marks Tesla's inaugural venture into establishing an energy storage Megafactory outside the US, demonstrating its strategic expansion into global markets.

Each Megapack unit can store over 3.9 megawatt-hours of energy, sufficient to power about 3,600 homes for an hour. Moreover, the Megapack's versatility allows over 200 units to be combined, forming an energy storage plant capable of storing 1 million kilowatt-hours of electricity.

Tesla's commitment to the energy sector has seen remarkable growth over the past few years, with its total installed energy storage capacity reaching 14.7 gigawatt-hours in 2023 – more than doubling from the previous year and driving a significant increase in profits.

In addition to its achievements in energy storage, Tesla continues to lead the global electric vehicle market. On March 30, Tesla surpassed the milestone of producing over 6 million pure electric vehicles, consolidating its position as the world's biggest electric vehicles manufacturer.

Most notably, Tesla's success extends to the Chinese market, where it maintains a consistent lead in sales.