Not official, says Miti source on report about Tesla scrapping factory plans

 

Thai daily The Nation reported that Tesla had scrapped plans to set up an electric vehicle factory in the region, with Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia as potential locations. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: 

The investment, trade and industry ministry (Miti) has dismissed a report by a Thai daily alleging that US electric car maker Tesla has abandoned plans to build factories in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia.

A Miti source said the report, which quoted an unnamed government source, was not an official statement from Tesla and lacked confirmation from the company itself.

This report is not an official statement from Tesla, but quotes an unnamed source. Confirmation on the report would have to come from Tesla,

 the source said.

Earlier today, Thai daily The Nation reported that Tesla had scrapped plans to set up an electric vehicle (EV) factory in the region, with Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia as potential locations. 

Tesla is currently only discussing charging stations, with the factory plans suspended worldwide. They are not proceeding in Malaysia, Indonesia, or anywhere else except for China, America and Germany,

 the government source told The Nation, adding that the decision was part of Tesla’s withdrawal of investment across Asia and beyond.

Last July, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced large-scale investments from Tesla and one of Elon Musk’s other hi-tech ventures, SpaceX, in Malaysia, which Anwar said would create tens of thousands of high-value jobs.

Anwar also said Tesla would set up its Malaysian headquarters, as well as service centres, in Selangor.

However, there was no previous mention of plans to establish an EV factory in the region.

At the time of writing, Tesla has yet to release an official response to the claims made in the report. - FMT