Auto Industry News

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said that, if finalized, the loan will help the project create critical materials for electric vehicle batteries.

Most immediately, Tesla's January price cuts drove deliveries of its China-made vehicles up 18% from December. Tesla's thick profit margins have put it in a position to take a price war to competitors in China and beyond, analysts say.

Sales of the now-popular and mostly pricier UVs grew around 28% and continued to outnumber that of passenger cars - which include entry-level cars and sedans - in January, according to SIAM data.

U.S. President Joe Biden praised the plan by Tesla Inc Chief Executive Elon Musk to open part of its electric vehicle charging network, saying the move is a "big deal" and will "make a big difference."

Before Tesla put out its first production car, Musk set expectations for three: a sports car, a cheaper four-door family car and an even more affordable third model.

The White House hopes the new rules, issued after nearly eight months of debate, will jump-start the biggest transformation of the U.S. driving landscape in generations. It seeks to give consumers unfettered access to a growing coast-to-coast network of EV charging stations, including Tesla Inc's Superchargers.

Tesla is developing a revamped version, codenamed "Highland", of the Model 3, which was first launched in 2017, Reuters reported in November.