In another example of how serious Tesla is about the Chinese auto market, it recently promoted its China president, Tom Zhu, to run its U.S. assembly plants and sales operations in North America and Europe. However, Mr Zhu’s official appointment as vice president of operations for Greater China has not changed.
News agency Reuters, citing internal positioning for reporting lines, reported that Zhu had been given new responsibilities, effectively making him Tesla’s most high-profile executive outside of Chief Executive Elon Musk himself. He will oversee deliveries in all of Tesla’s major markets — North America, Europe and China — crucial as the U.S.-based electric vehicle (EV) giant looks to scale up production and deliveries. According to further reports, reports from Troy Jones, vice president of sales and service for North America, will continue to be passed on from Musk to Zhu.
FILE PHOTO: Tesla China CEO Tom Zhu speaks at a delivery ceremony for China-made Tesla Model 3 cars at the Shanghai Gigafactory. (Reuters)
Zhu is no stranger to the operational side of North America, having previously been called upon to inspect and resolve production-related issues at Tesla’s U.S. factory, according to Reuters. He was also credited for bringing Tesla’s Shanghai factory back to full production following Covid-related restrictions. He is believed to have been hired initially to expand Tesla’s network of Superchargers in China, but has since been given a broader and more important role. Under his leadership, Tesla established the Shanghai factory and now produces electric vehicles not only for the local market, but also for some European markets.
Zhu’s promotion could calm jittery nerves at a time when investors are nervous about Musk concentrating much of his time on Twitter — a “distraction” that many fear could cost Tesla dearly.
Tesla managed to deliver a record 405,278 vehicles last quarter, and while that number looks impressive, it was lower than previous estimates. It has also been offering discounts on many of its models in China, where it hopes to expand its dominance even as local manufacturers are catching up and the company itself has faced issues related to safety concerns.
First published date: Jan 3, 2023 at 16:48 PM CST
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