- [Narrator] This is the Roadster,
(Roadster whooshing)
the first car Tesla ever released in 2008
and it was developed and produced in California.
(upbeat music) (tape whirring)
Fast forward 13 years to today
and you can find Teslas on the road around the world.
- I think we're close
to establishing a Tesla presence in Russia.
- [Narrator] But Tesla isn't just selling cars abroad,
it's also setting up factories around the world.
- The key for Tesla's global expansion
is going to be expanding manufacturing capacity quickly.
- [Narrator] Tesla's push comes at a time
when the stakes of going global are big
as the EV market will surge 775%
to about 35 million cars by 2030
and that can come with pitfalls.
(woman shouting in foreign language)
- [Narrator] After a spate of bad publicity in China,
Tesla sales took a hit in April
and auto analysts aren't sure if the company
can keep growing as fast
in one of its biggest markets.
- I think what Tesla's trying to do
is really drive home that first-mover advantage,
make sure it retains that number one spot.
- [Narrator] We analyzed three key speeches by Musk
in the past year to understand how Tesla plans
to put more of its vehicles on the road
all over the world.
(upbeat music)
First, we go to Moscow.
In May, Musk gave a speech via video conference
to hundreds of students
and tech entrepreneurs at a forum sponsored
by the Russian government.
He spoke about a wide range
of topics from politics and religion
to outer space.
- We need to establish a self-sustaining base
on the moon and up on Mars.
- [Narrator] But what really made headlines
was when he hinted at future plans
for a new factory.
- We're building one in Texas, Nevada, California
and over time, we will look to have factories
in other parts of the world
but potentially Russia at some point.
- [Narrator] The suggestion came as a surprise
because Tesla hasn't sold many cars in Russia.
There are around 700 vehicles on the roads there.
But Russia could fit a template Tesla has used before,
to open factories where it sees market potential.
- There are two big electric vehicle markets in the world:
China and Europe.
Tesla's already in China
and now it's opening up plants in Europe.
- [Narrator] That new plant is near Berlin
and auto analysts expect it to open in early 2022.
It's planning to produce half a million cars a year
and this would allow Tesla to directly sell its vehicles
to European countries
instead of importing them from China and the US
as it currently does.
With the three biggest markets covered,
auto analysts have been divided
over where Musk will set up shop next.
Some say he should double down
on the so-called BRIC countries.
- Brazil, Russia, India and China,
the big automakers are in Brazil
because that's a big market.
It's probably a good guess
that Tesla's looking at that.
- [Narrator] And of course, one of them
is the untapped market of Russia,
which grew by 95% last year.
- I think there's a lot of talent
and energy in Russia.
- [Narrator] Building factories in new countries
is a major logistical challenge,
especially with a hands-on CEO like Elon Musk.
- The big thing for Tesla right now
is the Giga Berlin, so it's in Berlin.
I've spent a fair bit of time in Berlin working on that.
- [Narrator] In a one-on-one video call
with The Wall Street Journal's editor in chief
in December last year,
Musk explained how he liked working closely
with his engineers.
- When I have spent too much time in a conference room,
that's generally when things have gone awry
and when I go to spend time on the factory floor,
we're really using the cars,
that's where things have gone better.
- [Narrator] Musk says being on the factory floor
is essential to creating good products,
especially because his company builds many parts,
like the battery packs and develops much
of the software in house.
But this makes it difficult for Tesla
to ramp up production,
compared with traditional automakers
that are moving into EVs.
- It doesn't have the factories,
it doesn't have the distribution networks on the ground.
Existing manufacturers like Volkswagen, Toyota, GM,
they already have a global manufacturing footprint
and they already have global distribution networks.
So what they're doing
is converting existing plants into electric vehicle plants.
- [Narrator] Plus building a factory from scratch
can cost billions of dollars.
And if the company fails to scale quickly enough
before other EVs flood the market,
a solution may be to think
more like a traditional automaker.
- It may be able to do this by building its own factories
or it may one day have to rely on contract manufacturers,
like Foxconn, which builds for Apple,
and is now getting into electric vehicles.
(upbeat music)
- [Narrator] Working in new markets
also means navigating different regulatory environments.
And in the US, Musk has been known
to collide with regulators.
- But the best thing that government can do
is just get out of the way.
- [Narrator] It's a contrast to his public persona in China.
- I'm very confident that the future in China
is gonna be great.
And that China is headed towards being the biggest economy
in the world.
- [Narrator] In March, Musk sat down for an interview
with China's national television channel
to talk about the country's economic plan.
- What attracts me most about China's five-year plan
is the tremendous commitment
to a low-carbon economy
and ultimately, to a sustainable energy economy.
♪ That I would go anywhere for you. ♪
- [Trefor] That says a lot about how he's been willing
to change his approach when working in China.
- I really wanna thank the government officials
that have been really helpful.
- [Trefor] Conflict with the authorities
really doesn't work here at all.
He obviously knows that
and has really done everything he can
to praise officials, to praise the Chinese system.
- [Narrator] Tesla has taken
a conciliatory approach when challenged.
For instance, at the Shanghai Auto Show in April,
a woman climbed on top of a Tesla vehicle
to shout allegations about faulty brakes.
(woman shouting in foreign language)
- [Narrator] The woman's claims
couldn't be verified independently
but complaints about Tesla spread
across the Chinese internet.
The company publicly apologized
and pledged to set up a customer satisfaction unit.
A few months later, Tesla complied with Chinese regulators
to address safety issues with the software upgrade
in more than 285,000 vehicles.
Musk has been less contentious with Chinese officials
and that has played a part
in Tesla's success there.
For example, the factory in Shanghai was built in 10 months.
Just compare that with his plant in Berlin.
As far back as 2015,
Musk has courted German officials.
Even the country's head of state, Angela Merkel.
But the plant is still facing a six-month delay.
Some industry watchers say it was caused
by Tesla's own lack of coordination,
given the company had benefited from legislation
that helped to fast track construction.
Musk has said German bureaucracy
and activists' environmental concerns
over water usage and the plant's impact
on local wildlife are why the project is behind.
He tweeted that the factory wouldn't use as much water
and that trees in the area were originally planted
to be turned into cardboard.
The delay of the Berlin plant shows
how even a superstar CEO
can't get around German approval processes.
- It's still organized kind of like a startup
with a charismatic leader
who basically controls everything from the top down,
which makes it very hard
for a company to deal with local regulatory issues.
It needs strong management on the ground,
which it doesn't really have here.
Maybe it needs a CEO and a real board.
That could, in the long run,
hinder Tesla on its path to growth.
- [Narrator] So if Elon Musk wants
to convert Tesla into a truly global player,
the billionaire CEO may have to buckle up
and prepare for a bumpy ride.
(upbeat music)